For a long time, it looked as if Dwight Howard would be destined to leave the Orlando Magic, possibly to end up with the Los Angeles Lakers. The Lakers have the perfect trade chip in Andrew Bynum, likely the second best center in the NBA. However, it appears as if Kobe Bryant wanted Dwight to be a secondary option behind himself and Pau Gasol, something that Howard wasn't satisfied with at all.
Sam Amick of Sports Illustrated filed this report that says that both might need to concede something.
But the dynamic has changed, and it's one of shared desperation at this point. Both Howard (whose Magic have lost in the first round two consecutive years, the latest with him sidelined because of back surgery) and Bryant (whose Lakers have back-to-back second-round exits) need each other now more than ever. Howard, 26, an eight-year veteran, is still searching for his first title, having fallen to Bryant's Lakers in his only NBA Finals appearance, in 2009. The 33-year-old Bryant, defiant, as always, at the end of the loss to Oklahoma City and well aware that Father Time just got louder still, must know deep down that he'll never get that sixth ring to tie Michael Jordan as long as this Lakers group remains the same.
To see how interested Laker fans would be in Howard, go to Silver Screen and Roll. To talk about Howard and the Magic, hit up Orlando Pinstriped Post.
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