NBA Trade Rumors: Dwight Howard Creating False Hope For Magic

There are those who will say it’s too early to tell if Howard is definitely leaving. That the Magic are among the Eastern Conference’s best teams. That Orlando is scouring the league for another star to pair with their center. That there’s still hope.

Those people are wrong.

The latest report from Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel has Howard wanting to “work it out with Orlando,” which has undoubtedly sent Magic fans into an optimistic frenzy. But it’s much too early for a victory lap.

Anything Howard says with regard to Orlando has to be taken with a grain of salt. At this point, he could merely be posturing. If the perception is that he wanted to work it out with the Magic, but gets dealt anyway, he can look to that “reality” to save his image.

But the reality is that Howard’s heart is not in Orlando. How could it be? The Magic may be playoff bound, but after a 16-point loss to the lowly Charlotte Bobcats, it’s clear they won’t be making any postseason noise.

And while Orlando is searching for a superstar to play alongside Howard, they do not have the necessary assets to pull of such a deal. Ryan Anderson has a bright future, but he’s not worth it to the Golden State Warriors to relinquish Monta Ellis.

The Magic are not a title contenders, they are barely playoff worthy. They have struggled to establish an identity, and they can only blame so much on Howard. Winners, win. They don’t toil with an unhealthy Jekyll and Hyde act until they become almost unbearable to watch.

As painful as it may be to admit, Howard is not wrong in his desire to move on from Orlando. He’s also not wrong to engage in the not-art of posturing, because it is going to help his image when he leaves.

And leave he will. The Magic have made sure of that.