The Dwight Howard Saga
By Will Fairbanks
This needs to stop sometime. Seriously, its getting old. Professional basketball players, and I repeat, PROFESSIONAL basketball players are asking for trades, demanding that they leave the team they are currently on, and are citing irreconcilable differences with ownership or the front office. I just can't see how a player can be considered "professional" if they publicly request for trades and consistently whine about who they are playing with. Last time I checked, players sign contracts for a certain amount of years and money and are obligated to carry out their "duties" with the provided team until the end of the contract. Recently, this has not been the case. Ever since Kobe and Amare wanted out of their respective teams and demanded to be traded, players left and right have been asking to do the same. With demands by Carmelo, Chris Paul, and now, the latest of these, Dwight Howard (all players of high caliber), front offices have been put in a tight spot. Do we satisfy the trade demand and try to get something of quality in return? Do we keep them here, listen to them whine and complain all season, while being led by this individual? Or do we put the season in jeopardy by not trading them and have them disrupting games with lackluster effort or even holding out?
Organizations are always put in tough situations when dealing with prima donna athletes. Lets take a step back and look at why. There are realistically three sets of people involved when a there is a potential trade. A player asks for a trade and he does not necessarily care about his image to fans. He wants to be in a situation that gives him better teammates and puts him in the position to win more games. On the other hand, a player asks for a trade and the organization sees it's image as number one. Every move the organization makes in dealing with a player's request is watched so closely that one false move could mean a decline in ticket sales and merchandise revenue. When dealing with a trade request, yes, the player and the organizations want to be happy, but what about the fans? After all, sports is an entertainment business relying on fan contribution. So what would I do if I were a GM dealing with one of these players?
In the instance of Dwight Howard and the Orlando Magic, the answer is simple; trade him, trade him while I can. End the drama now, get something in return and continue building with what I have and what I will get. I am not worried about public image. I have to do what I can to make this as successful a season as possible. Some may say, I trade Howard and I lose out on the playoffs for a few years. I could then argue that I would much rather trade him, receive people who are willing to put in the time and effort to play for MY team, and want to win a championship. I don't want someone who will not play hard for MY team each and every day.
I certainly don't listen to his stupid requests for bringing in players to try and win. The man only has one year left on his contract and is claiming that he "could stay" in Orlando if an effort is made to satisfy those requests. I truly believe that regardless of anybody that I decide to bring in, Dwight Howard is gone after this year. Too much has happened for him to want to stay. I wouldn't even bother with his list of teams that he wants to go to. If one of those teams isn't willing to deal, then what do I do? I have to find the best possible trade out there in order to put MY team in a better position to build and win in the coming years.
As far as an actual trade is concerned, I would NOT trade Howard for Andrew Bynum. Howard is averaging 18.2 points/game, 12.9 rebounds/game, and 2.2 blocks/game while starting 566 out of 567 games. Howard has also been named the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year three years in a row from 2009-2011. Andrew Bynum averages 10.1 points/game, 7.1 rebounds/game, and 1.5 blocks/game while only playing in 332 out of 492 games, starting only 240 of them. Howard has missed only 7 games in his 7 years of playing. Bynum has missed 160, almost two full seasons worth. This trade offer supposedly offered by Los Angeles also included Pau Gasol and Hedo Terkoglu. Honestly, this wouldn't be fair at all. Gasol is consistent but nothing spectacular. He does not provide a defensive threat down low. Orlando would be losing a lot and not gaining enough in return.
The trade rumors surrounding Dwight to New Jersey have been interesting. These would involve New Jersey giving up Brooke Lopez. In order to have this work, a third team would have had to jump in. It was reported that Portland was offering Gerald Wallace, but that remains to be seen. I honestly feel that no matter where Dwight goes, there is really no match in trade value, unless you trade star power for star power. Right now there doesn't seem to be much out there for Orlando to get back on a trade but you have to find something. You can't play out the season, let him walk, and get nothing but a bitter ending to a storied career in Orlando.
It doesn't sit well with me that someone would begin a season requesting a trade to another team. What does that do for the team? Where does that leave his teammates knowing he doesn't want to play with them and that he merely plays with them to earn a paycheck? I kept emphasizing that it was MY team in these instances where I put myself in the GM's shoes because that's who makes the decisions. It won't be some player calling the shots on who to bring in or where he should land in a trade. He can argue that Orlando wouldn't be a basketball town if it wasn't for him, but I could come right back and say that the Magic made the decision on draft day to bring him in and give him an opportunity to be a star. Now that he is, he wants to leave? Okay, give him what he wants, but do it on your terms and get who is necessary to begin building again.
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