Dwight Howard Trade Rumors: Charlotte Hornets Offer Rejected, Howard’s Agent Seeks Trade
Dwight Howard trade rumors reveal a confirmed offer from the Charlotte Hornets. These Howard trade rumors state that Charlotte offered Al Jefferson and Spencer Hawes, but the Houston Rockets turned them down. This new report comes from Frank Isola at the New York Daily News, who cited league sources for the information on this trade.
That’s not all that Isola had to say about the Dwight Howard trade rumors either, as he also reported that Dan Fegan (Howard’s agent) is working hard to get a deal done. The front office in Houston gave Fegan permission to work on a deal before the NBA trade deadline, giving the team an additional avenue to make the right move. It hasn’t resulted in a deal, though, and time is starting to run out.
As previously reported by the Inquisitr, there has been a lot of discord between James Harden and Dwight Howard, dating back to the 2014 NBA Playoffs. The Houston Rockets lost to the Portland Trail Blazers in the first round of the postseason, resulting in the two All-Star players turning on each other. Now the experiment in Houston is about to come to an end, because Howard can leave during NBA free agency.
Howard is under contract to earn about $22.4 million this year and then about $23.3 million in the 2016-17 NBA season. During the offseason, Howard can opt out of that deal and become a free agent. It gives him a lot of control over his long-term future, which is something the front office in Houston has to take into consideration. In the short-term, the franchise could get several good assets in a trade involving the former All-Star center.
Despite all the bad press that has come along with the most recent Dwight Howard trade rumors, he is still having a very good statistical season. Through 44 games with the Rockets this year, Howard is averaging 14.6 points, 12.0 rebounds, 1.5 blocks, and a steal per game. Those are really good numbers in just 32.3 minutes a night. Any team acquiring him before the NBA trade deadline would be getting a huge boost in the low post.
There are some negatives that come along with Howard, beginning with his poor free throw shooting and mental lapses on defense. At the free throw line, Howard is averaging just 53.2 percent this season. That’s below his career percentage of 57.1 and shows that he hasn’t figured things out at the line. He does shoot 61.2 percent from the field, though, so it is a give-and-take situation with the big man. The offensive numbers could also be increased on a team where he becomes a primary option.
So will the latest Dwight Howard trade rumors finally lead to a deal? Examining the rejected offer by the Charlotte Hornets, Al Jefferson is a free agent in the offseason and Spencer Hawes has one more guaranteed year at $5.8 million. If it is considered a wash to trade Howard for Jefferson, then the Rockets would only be acquiring a season of Spencer Hawes to make that trade. It isn’t exactly an incentive-laden deal for the Rockets, showing why the team wasn’t intent on accepting the offer.
There are going to be a lot of teams linked to the Houston Rockets as the clock ticks down on the 2016 NBA trade deadline. Some of the teams that have shown interest in players like Ty Lawson, Trevor Ariza, and Dwight Howard include the Cleveland Cavaliers, Chicago Bulls, Miami Heat, New York Knicks, LA Clippers, Milwaukee Bucks, Chicago Bulls, and Boston Celtics. Even if Howard doesn’t get traded before the deadline arrives, it’s still possible that the Rockets trade one of the other veteran players on the roster.
[Photo by Scott Halleran/Getty Images]
