REPORT: Dwight Howard Likely To Ditch The Lakers

[Hack Wilson - real]

howard is NOT doing a sign and trade if he goes to Houston...why hurt his team and help the lakers?

[M Dogg™]

Because he wants the money. If there is something about Howard, he wants the money. And as for me, I WANT THE PICKS!! Mitch had better want those picks too.

[Russell Bell]

horford averaged .3 points per game more despite not playing with a ball hog like Kobe

and we all know demarcus cousins is a joke.

cousins has potential, but he throws up some of the worst shots ive ever seen sometimes and dribbles around the key waaay too much.  he needs to streamline his post game.  and get his head right but everybody already knows that bit.

[The Watcher]

houston have one first round 2014 draft pick, and thats likely to be near the bottom of the 1st round ..

can't see the lakers doing a sign & trade anyway, nobody they get from houston would make them title contenders. they would be better served just riding out the next season with what they have and rebuilding after kobe's $30m contract expires. i wouldnt be paying luxury tax on a team that would be an 8th seed

[M Dogg™]

If Houston can get a team to trade with them Lin and a few other players for the money dump they'll need to sign Howard and another max player. (Howard asked if they can have 3 max players like Miami) So a money dump will be needed, which usually means trading players for picks. But the Lakers need to make sure those picks come to them. If Houston doesn't sign Howard, then they'd more than likely not trade for picks but keep the team they have.

[Sccit]

I have figured out my best case situation.

Howard picks Houston, but wants a sign and trade for max money. The Lakers will only do draft picks and one bad contract. (It's always a bad contract in these situations, I'm guessing Lin) The Lakers also want 2 unprotected first round draft choices for the 2014 draft. Hopefully one of them is a lotto pick. Reason, 2014 is STACKED!! Even the 3 pick in the draft could be a future hall of famers. I am hoping the Lakers get into this. It's not in the Laker's culture to do the draft since James Worthy. But the Lakers do need this badly.

1.were not wasting Kobe's last 3 years on tanking/rebuilding
2.houston's picks would not be lottery picks

[Sccit]

[Sccit]

houston have one first round 2014 draft pick, and thats likely to be near the bottom of the 1st round ..

can't see the lakers doing a sign & trade anyway, nobody they get from houston would make them title contenders. they would be better served just riding out the next season with what they have and rebuilding after kobe's $30m contract expires. i wouldnt be paying luxury tax on a team that would be an 8th seed

Asik, Pasrsons, Beverly >>>>> Dwight

[M Dogg™]

I have figured out my best case situation.

Howard picks Houston, but wants a sign and trade for max money. The Lakers will only do draft picks and one bad contract. (It's always a bad contract in these situations, I'm guessing Lin) The Lakers also want 2 unprotected first round draft choices for the 2014 draft. Hopefully one of them is a lotto pick. Reason, 2014 is STACKED!! Even the 3 pick in the draft could be a future hall of famers. I am hoping the Lakers get into this. It's not in the Laker's culture to do the draft since James Worthy. But the Lakers do need this badly.

1.were not wasting Kobe's last 3 years on tanking/rebuilding
2.houston's picks would not be lottery picks

1. This years lottery will produce ready to play NOW rookies. I'm telling you now, 2014's class will be the class like 1996 or 2003.
2. Let Houston know to get a package ready and trade with some lotto bound teams. This does two things, weaken's Houston and gives the Lakers lotto picks in the best draft of the last 11 years.

Also, why are you worried about wasting KOBE'S final years. You know what made the Magic Johnson pick great, the Lakers got him and they held him for his whole career. Same with Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, James Worthy, and they traded for a rookie Kobe Bryant. If you have a player who can be that player in the future, then you try to get them when they are coming up. Why wait 5 years when they are a free agent and there is NO guarantee you'll get them, when you can get a future franchise player NOW. Why wait until Kobe retires, the next time the Lakers get a lotto pick might not be for 3-4 years, and by then you don't know who is coming up. Right now the Lakers have Dwight Howard as the ONLY thing worth lotto picks right now. Howard is young enough to build around, and old enough to win now. He's the only thing a team will give up lotto picks for. We shouldn't waste this chance with the best draft in 11 years coming.

Your obsession with Kobe makes you short sighted to the Laker's larger needs. Life after Kobe and having a franchise player for the next 10-15 years, like Magic, like West, like Kobe. That's what makes the Lakers great, they always have the player, or they sign that player. And right now if you have an asset that can get lotto picks in return, you do it.

[Sccit]

if you want to watch Kobe's last 3 years as a Laker with us rebuilding, then just start following the T-Wolves...you're not enough of a Laker fan to understand the greatness of Kobe and just how much he's meant to the organization. u think theres just another Magic or Kobe waiting around the corner? lmfao....only when Kobe retires u will realize just how spoiled we were. thats a once in a lifetime player...appreciate.

[M Dogg™]

Well I agree Kobe is a once in a generation player, with the talent in this draft, it's not too much to ask to get one. Hell, it's not a rebuild if Kobe is still starting and the kid comes off the bench. Rookies are on title teams all the time. But in a draft this deep, you'd be a fool NOT to try and get in. We may not get Wiggins, but we can pick up some youth who can contribute now, and make you argue that this next kid is better than LeBron because he won a title in his rookie year... *cough*likeMagic*cough*. What's so wrong with getting a player who'll be good now, and great later to help contribute.

This is why I HATE Kobe fans who'll put the needs of their standom to Kobe over the needs of the Lakers, when Kobe would more than likely get a young player next year too. Kobe has said over and over the Lakers need to get younger.

[Sccit]

i think ur missing the point...the reason i dont want to tank for rookies IS because i'm putting the lakers first. if we have an opportunity to win now, i much rather take that, and building for NOW around Kobe gives us just that....all ur ideas have been terrible, just chalk it up as a loss brodie.


we do need to get younger, but we dont need to trade for picks. we need to get players who are ready to contribute 2013-2014. thats all there is to it.

[Sccit]

DWIGHT TO MAKE DECISION FRIDAY:

Peter Vescey said on Twitter Tuesday that his sources suggest Dwight Howard will make his "decision" on Friday, in regards to what team he'll be joining next season.
The Rockets are the favorites, the Lakers make a lot of sense, and the Mavericks, Hawks and Warriors are also in play. We're thinking Rockets, but wouldn't be surprised regardless of where Howard ends up. He's historically had a difficult time making up his mind and it can be argued that free agency won't truly start until he lets the world know where he's going. Jul 3 - 1:09 AM
Source: Peter Vescey on Twitter

[Hack Wilson - real]

I have figured out my best case situation.

Howard picks Houston, but wants a sign and trade for max money. The Lakers will only do draft picks and one bad contract. (It's always a bad contract in these situations, I'm guessing Lin) The Lakers also want 2 unprotected first round draft choices for the 2014 draft. Hopefully one of them is a lotto pick. Reason, 2014 is STACKED!! Even the 3 pick in the draft could be a future hall of famers. I am hoping the Lakers get into this. It's not in the Laker's culture to do the draft since James Worthy. But the Lakers do need this badly.

1.were not wasting Kobe's last 3 years on tanking/rebuilding

then why is Mike D'antoni the head coach for the next 2 years?

[M Dogg™]

Tank? How? Houston has NOTHING of value to winning next year that they are willing to give up. The only thing they have is Harden. But the whole reason Howard would go to Houston is Harden, so that's out the question. So if Howard picks Houston, then you get the most value out of Howard you possibly can. You tell Houston to get some trades for some first round draft picks in 2014, and you say then you can have Howard, so Houston will have to trade some players that they wanted to trade to LA to other teams for their draft picks. Because you are NOT winning a title next year with Lin as your point guard. After that you sign some vet big men to one year deals, as in 2014 the Lakers will have a TON of cap space and you don't want to mess that up. This is about maximizing having Dwight Howard. If the Lakers gave up Andrew Bynum for Howard, then why not maximize this position. Look at the Cavs when they lost LeBron, they ended up with many draft picks. After 2014 the Lakers will be dumping huge portions of this roster, it's time to put pieces together to reload. After all, the Lakers never rebuild, they reload.