Hooray for conflicting information.
Frank Isola of the New York Daily News reported on Wednesday that the Houston Rockets have held Dwight Howard trade discussions with the Boston Celtics. He himself was quick to note that it was a long shot.
Turns out, though, the scenario is an impossible shot. Or whatever.
From ESPN.com’s Marc Stein and Calvin Watkins:
The Houston Rockets are approaching the upcoming trade deadline with the intent to keep center Dwight Howard for the rest of the season, according to sources familiar with the team’s plans.
Sources told ESPN.com on Wednesday that the Rockets, despite recent speculation to the contrary, are not looking to trade Howard before the Feb. 18 deadline even though he has the right to become a free agent July 1 and could thus leave the team this summer without receiving anything in return.
This is not surprising. While Howard can leave for nothing in free agency, the Rockets aren’t going to get much in return. He is a 30-year-old flight risk with a deteriorating body, and someone of his ilk, who is a spacing liability on offense, doesn’t move the needle as effectively as he did in years past.
Plus, the Rockets aren’t trying to hit the reset button. They’re not looking to take back contracts and picks and prospects. General manager Daryl Morey would rather have the cap space to chase free agents. There’s no way the Rockets hold on to more than two of Clint Capela, Howard, Terrence Jones and Donatas Motiejunas leading into next season, but that’s a predicament they’ll tackle over the summer, not over the next two-plus weeks.
