NBA Trade Rumors: Miami Heat Want Dwight Howard From Houston Rockets

NBA trade rumors are suggesting that a potentially huge deal between the Houston Rockets and Miami Heat could take place before the deadline on Thursday, according to CBS Sports. Dwight Howard and Hassan Whiteside, two of the best centers in the National Basketball Association, become free agents after the season ends, and their current teams are hesitant about their respective futures.

Hassan Whiteside has made a name for himself by being a player who was forced to go overseas to being someone who might be signing a maximum contract in the NBA this summer. He has emerged as a difference maker at the center position by putting up numbers that are extremely impressive. Whiteside has even been able to get a triple double by getting ten blocks, something that is quite rare in the National Basketball Association.

Whenever you’re able to put up impressive numbers, especially at the depleted center position, NBA teams are going to fight over themselves to get you under contract. That is not the case for the Miami Heat. Since Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh are towards the end of their amazing careers, the Heat is built to win NBA Championships now. Hassan Whiteside still has maturity issues, so he’s not a very good fit with what Wade and Bosh are trying to accomplish before they head off for retirement.

Dwight Howard has been accused of not being serious enough about winning an NBA Championship. He’s not quite the leader that he needs to be as a franchise player. Fortunately for Howard, the Miami Heat don’t really need another leader. Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh have already got that position on lock. They simply need Howard to bring his fantastic play to South Beach, so that Miami can try to beat LeBron James and the Cleveland Cavaliers.

Dwight Howard becomes a free agent after the season. He might be interested in signing with another NBA team if the offer is big enough. Howard is trying to for one last big pay day in the NBA. Some teams, such as the Houston Rockets, are hesitant to lock him up to a long term deal. Miami Heat president Pat Riley might be willing to take that chance. He wants to cash in on the final few years of Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh.

The Houston Rockets are having a really disappointing season. They were expected to be a legitimate NBA Championship contenders this year, yet their chemistry has been awful. Kevin McHale even lost his job as a result. There are talks of the Rockets going in to rebuilding or reloading mode. Reports have even surfaced that Houston is considering the possibility of trading away both James Harden and Dwight Howard.

Hassan Whiteside is younger than Dwight Howard, so that helps a little bit with the rebuilding and reloading. The Houston Rockets are hoping that something in his brain will kick in when he realizes that the Miami Heat are willing to get rid of him. Perhaps that will spark the maturity that he is missing. If Whiteside can get his head straight, then he can easily be one of the building blocks for the Rockets.

This is a relatively safe move for the Houston Rockets. If they find that Hassan Whiteside really is too immature to be consistently successful in the NBA, then they can let him walk away in free agency. Let Hassan be a headache for another team. The Rockets already have Clint Capella on the roster. He’s young and has shown signs of becoming a very good center some day.

[Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images]