Dwight Howard has reportedly chosen to sign with the Houston Rockets. Forward Royce White became a casualty of the decision on Friday, and the Rockets still have a chance to land free agent Josh Smith.
Howard's choice to join the Rockets was first reported Friday night by Sam Amick of USA Today Sports, who cited a person with knowledge of Howard's decision. While the Los Angeles Lakers offered the promise of a huge market, Howard seemingly decided to go with the team offering him the best chance to win NBA titles.
What's next?
Howard isn't eligible to sign a contract until July 10. That leaves the possibility of the Lakers either letting Howard walk and take the resultant cap space in preparation for next summer's free agents, or the team can pursue a sign-and-trade deal with Houston.
A sign-and-trade deal would be a dream come true for the Rockets — it'd allow the organization to pursue another big-name free agent, such as Smith.
The Rockets met on Monday with Smith, according to USA Today Sports. One of the topics discussed was the possibility of Smith joining Howard, who's been a close friend since their AAU days in Atlanta, if Howard decided to sign with the Rockets.
As of now, it appears Houston would need to entice the Atlanta Hawks into a sign-and-trade deal to acquire Smith. It's uncertain what the deal would include, especially if the Lakers agree to a sign-and-trade for Howard.
For the possibility of a sign-and-trade with Los Angeles, the deal would likely include Omer Asik and Jeremy Lin. Asik is a 7-foot, defensive-minded center who averaged a double-double last season, and Lin has upside — especially if he reunites with coach Mike D'Antoni, who Lin played his best basketball under in New York.
Because the sign-and-trade is so beneficial to Houston, the team could throw in at least one future draft pick to sweeten the deal for Los Angeles.
Meanwhile, shortly after Howard's reported decision became public, the Rockets traded 2012 first-round pick Royce White to the Philadelphia 76ers. The move, intended to clear additional cap space for Howard, was first reported by Yahoo! Sports. It's unclear what the Rockets received in return.
Howard hasn't yet confirmed whether he chose Houston, nor have the Rockets.
*UPDATE (10:35 p.m.): Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak confirmed Howard is not returning to Los Angeles.
