According to multiple sources, the Magic have reportedly pulled All-Star center Dwight Howard off of the trading block and are no longer willing to trade him elsewhere.
The Magic have said that none of the offers that have been on the table, most notably from the Lakers and Nets, have been worth accepting. To avoid more headlines, the team is no longer taking calls for the aforementioned Howard, who has been on the trading block as of late.
Yesterday, Howard made a short list of teams he's willing to play for that included the Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, New Jersey Nets and the defending champions Dallas Mavericks. Now it looks like Howard will remain an integral part of the Magic heading into the upcoming season.
Early Wednesday morning, reports surfaced that the Nets were close to striking a deal for Howard, that included the Blazers and of course, the Magic.The Nets would have acquired Howard, point guard Chris Duhon and Hedo Turkoglu's hefty contract from the Magic, while Orlando would have received center Brook Lopez and center Johan Petro from New Jersey and forward Gerald Wallace from Portland -- they would have also likely received one or two first-round picks. In exchange for Wallace and for participating in the trade, the Blazers would have acquired an astounding four first-round picks.
However, the deal died after it was first reported by ESPN.com and it appears that Howard isn't going anywhere, as the Magic are preparing to keep him for the entire 2011-12 season.
General manager Otis Smith was trying to achieve financial flexibility with the deal, as he would have gotten rid of Howard's remaining contract, along with Turkoglu and Duhon, who are both combined to be owed almost $45 million for the next three seasons.
But if the deal had still gone through, the Magic wouldn't have been a cap-friendly team anyway. They recently re-signed Jason Richardson to a four-year, $25 million deal and signed forward Glen Davis, who they just acquired from Boston, to a four-year, $26 million contract. That does not help them moving forward, as they're looking to sign Howard to a long-term extension.
The Nets had recently been looking for a third team to help them acquire Howard -- Golden State had recently attempted to become that third team, in hopes of getting rid of Monta Ellis to provide valuable assets to the Magic.
Orlando had reportedly wanted to get rid of Turkoglu's hefty contract, along with Duhon, who is owed $10.7 million over the next three seasons.
But it looks like for now, the Magic will retain Howard and it is uncertain whether he will be traded anytime soon.
