again, I can see some of these teams making him an offer, just not the max in years or $$. I just don't see a bull market for him.
It's not about a bull market for him. It's about a bear market for free agents in general. How much a GM would give Howard in a vacuum is meaningless. How much a GM declares he wants to give Howard months in advance is meaningless. When push comes to shove, and the top 5 or so free agents are snatched up, and there are all these middling teams with max cap room and nothing to spend it on and fanbases clamoring for a splash, Howard will suddenly look a lot better, and the GM who was rational months before will suddenly start talking himself into Howard, and there will be more than one such GM, and so a mini-bidding war will ensue, and Howard will get the max, and the "winning" franchise will almost insta-regret it. Like the desperate scene in a bar before last call when the least-mediocre chick starts looking like a model to dudes with beer goggles, and then the morning after remorse, etc. TLDR, no matter the sport: Never underestimate the willingness of front offices flush with cash but short on options to spend it badly.
If you don't want to discuss the topic in a vacuum, then why did you edit out the team analysis of who may (or may not) sign him in the real world, as well as quotes from league execs, then start talking in sports generalities? Follow me?
What team is going to sign Howard to a max contract this summer, and why? What GM wants to get fired when Howard is annoying his teammates, sitting out back to backs like a *****, and whining to his coaches about touches while making $30mil in December of his 2nd season on a 4 year deal?
Maybe Michael Jordan will instruct Rich Cho to do it. Maybe.
Not sure "no" next to a team counts as analysis. So, for example, why wouldn't Atlanta or Orlando or Milwaukee be susceptible to the pressure to spend the money on something big?
Because it would need to make some sense.
Why would Orlando re-sign Dwight Howard to a max contract? Why would Atlanta when they could do the same with Horford, who doesn't wreck the locker room, they've made clear they'd like to keep (and vice versa)... because Howard thinks it would be nice to 'go home'? Why would Milwaukee when they have Monroe?
Dino, if you think there's a team where it makes sense, why not call them out and explain why? I get your general POV -- someone will be dumb enough to do it -- but i don't think you're assertion that I'm wrong about how (not especially) competitive the market will be for Howard this summer is very clearly justified.