Dwight Howard had a chance to prove that he's a max contract guy, but flushed that opportunity down the toilet due to his stubbornness.
The Houston Rockets center remains the Rockets center after the team failed to pull off a trade before the NBA-imposed deadline. Howard is set to become a free agent afte the 2015-16 season, and didn't want to give up that leverage, according to Forbes.
Dwight Howard Becoming Terrell Owens Of NBA
"It's not as if they didn't try to get Howard out of Houston," Forbes reported. "Charlotte offered Al Jefferson and Spencer Hawes, according to the New York Daily News' Frank Isola. Industry sources tell Forbes that Miami called, knowing that Chris Bosh could be lost for a significant amount of games if he's suffering from a second round of blood clots. Milwaukee even tried, but couldn't get any assurances from Howard that he'd be there beyond the next couple of months. As much as his own agent, Dan Fegan, tried to work a deal after he was given permission by the Rockets, he couldn't find a suitor. ESPN's Mark Stein reported that in addition to the aforementioned teams, the Rockets talked to Atlanta, Boston, Chicago and Dallas.
"No surprise. So why no trade? Howard, 30, makes $22 million and has had knee and back issues in recent seasons. He's reportedly had some problems with the team's other diva, James Harden, and Howard is looked at by some league execs as a talented player on the decline who still isn't driven to win. Perhaps the biggest obstacle: He has an opt out clause after this season in his contract and plans on exercising it. That meant that anyone who wanted to trade for him was merely renting him for the rest of this season and was opposed to giving the Rockets anything approaching equal value."
Dwight Howard Could Be Out Of NBA If He Doesn't Wise Up
Multiple reports have indicated that Howard is seeking a max contract, that could be worth up to $30 million per season.
Good luck with that.
Howard still can prove that he's a valuable asset, but his lack of chemistry with Harden has not resulted in Howard playing with a chip on his shoulder.
Since leading Orlando to the 2009 NBA Finals, Howard has not shown that he makes a playoff contender any better. The Lakers entered the 2012-13 season as an NBA Finals contender but struggled even to make the playoffs. Kobe Bryant had to work so hard to get the Lakers in that he blew out his Achilles after playing a ton of minutes.
Houston's impressive run to the Western Conference Finals last season came as Howard was limited to 41 regular-season games. He did average 14.0 rebounds in 17 playoff games, but his 16.4 points per game were his second lowest in any postseason year, and his 41.2 percent free-throw shooting was his worst.
As it stands now, the Rockets aren't even qualified for the playoffs. So in a league that grows more guard-driven by the day, Howard will be lucky to sign a contract that approaches the value of Warriors center Andrew Bogut, who is scheduled to make $12.7 million in 2016-17.
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