Orlando Magic: Why Playing Without Dwight Howard Is a Blessing in Disguise

After what seemed like a futile effort to convince Dwight Howard to stay went North, their now faced with the prospect of being without him for the playoffs.

From Click Orlando:

After visiting Los Angeles, Pingalore’s sources confirmed that Howard was adamant about joining the team in Cleveland but the Magic asked him to return to Orlando.

Howard would eventually travel to Cleveland. However, Howard sat in the hotel for the game Sunday evening and rejoined the team as they traveled back to Orlando.

“It was strange since that Howard wanted to go to Cleveland and offer support but never made it to the game,” said one of Pingalore’s sources.

Howard would also likely sit out the postseason, according to the source.

Though Howard has been ignorant and downright tactless for a majority of the season, he has still been the heart, soul and lone hope for Orlando’s title hopes. His absence from the playoffs is a game-changer, and not the kind that the Magic and their fans are likely to embrace.

But they should.

It sounds thoughtless and more than slightly unwarranted, but Orlando has to take a look at the big picture. Howard voided his Early Termination Option, but this carousel of drama is set to perpetuate over the summer and into next season. And after what transpired throughout first half of this season—the first half of a shortened season, mind you—the last reality the Magic are going to be amenable to facing is the latter-half of a soap opera.

However, the longer Howard remains out of the lineup, the less likely it becomes that Orlando, and the rest of league, has to endure a sequel to the superstar’s saga.

We know what the Magic can do with Howard. He’s a one-man wrecking crew capable of shifting the outcome of an entire game in Orlando’s favor. What we aren’t privy to, though, is what the other $45 million worth of players can do without Howard.

Howard has missed seven of the last nine games, and the Magic are 3-4 in his absence, results that the center and Orlando’s brass must be closely monitoring.

The Magic have no cap room to spare, so unless the front office finds a way to dump a boatload of payroll fast, they won’t be major players in the free agent market. So, this Orland team you see now, is the one you’ll see, but most importantly, the one Howard will see, next season.

If the Magic are to have any chance at retaining Howard long term, the bounty of overpaid role players are going to have to prove their mettle. Howard wants to win a title, and in the ever changing landscape of the NBA, he’s not going to win one as a team’s sole lifeline.

Should Orlando fail miserably without Howard, in the form of a postseason sweep, the Magic will have to accept that the supporting cast they have assembled is not liable to assist their star in his hunt for a title. And at that point, they must move on, and find a way to pull off a Carmelo Anthony-like trade.

However, should Orlando rise to the occasion, and show at least some worthy fight in the postseason, maybe Howard does what he does best, and thinks twice about signing a highly lucrative, long term extension.

It’s brutal and undeniably risky, but the time for embracing complacency is over. The Magic have to find out who they are outside of Dwight Howard, just as the Lakers have done with regard to Kobe Bryant, and just as the Bulls have done with regard to Derrick Rose.

Whatever happens while Howard’s inactive, has the potential to determine his future in Orlando.

The Magic will, and should, welcome Howard back with open arms if he’s given the green light in time for the postseason.

That said, they must also keep an open mind, and maintain a sense of hope if he doesn’t, as it could wind up being the difference in their pursuit of a concrete future.