NBA Trade Rumors: Dwight Howard Won't Give Up Opt-Out Option, Next Move Is Unclear

After a long day of rumors that basically had the future of Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard all over the map,ESPN's Marc Stein is reporting that Howard told the Magic in a conference call on Wednesday that he refuses to concede the early termination option on his current contract.

It had previously been reported that Howard told some Magic teammates that he would waive the option and remain with the team through the 2012-2013 season in order to avoid being traded before this week's trade deadline. Stein says that Howard and his agent, Dan Fegan, called the team before Wednesday's game against San Antonio to clarify the player's position.

When asked why Howard told several teammates and members of the organization earlier in the day that he had indeed decided not to opt out of his contract, the source insisted that Howard 'didn't fully understand the ramifications' of surrendering his ETO.

So while it appears that previous reports about Howard's stated intentions weren't necessarily incorrect, it's becoming clear that Howard doesn't have any concrete plans for his future going forward.

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NBA Trade Rumors: Dwight Howard Won't Opt Out, To Stay With Magic For 2012-2013 Season

Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard, the focus of major trade rumors over the past few months, has reportedly told teammates that he won't be opting out this summer and instead will remain with the team for the 2012-2013 season. According to a report from WFTV, an affiliate of ABC in Orlando, Howard told the team of his plans on Wednesday.

One of the best players in the NBA, Howard has long been part of trade rumors after stating his intention to opt out of his current deal and hit free agency this summer, but it appears that he's now changed his mind.

Rather than opt out of his deal this summer and either sign an extension with Orlando or leave to join a new team, Howard will now exercise his player option for the 2012-2013 season with the opportunity to hit free agency following next season.

In the short-term, this means that Howard is a lock to stay in Orlando through this season, so it'll be interesting to see if the Magic can make moves to improve the team for a championship run this year. With Howard sticking around through next season, the Magic

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NBA Trade Rumors: Magic May Trade Dwight Howard Without Extension In Place

Growing frustrated with the entire situation, the Orlando Magic have been telling teams that they will trade center Dwight Howard before the trade deadline if the two sides can't agree to a contract extension soon, according to Chris Broussard of ESPN.

Here's one of Broussard's sources on the topic:

Dwight's dreaming if he thinks Orlando won't trade him without a commitment. He needs to make some small commitment to them. They're saying it can't be one way.

According to the source, Orlando was offended by Howard's recent public plea to stay with the Magic through the end of the season given his intention to hit free agency at the end of the year. The team feels that Howard is trying to unfairly manipulate the situation.

The report says that Orlando would be satisfied with retaining Howard without an extension in place as long as the center refuses to opt-out of his current deal and his free agency this summer. He hasn't been willing to make that consolation yet, though.

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2012 NBA Trade Deadline: Bulls Working On Trade For Pau Gasol

The Chicago Bulls are apparently in pursuit of Los Angeles Lakers center-forward Pau Gasol, reports ESPN's Marc Stein:

Bulls exploring avenues to try to trade for Lakers' Pau Gasol, sources close to situation say. Story going up now at ESPN online

— Marc Stein (@ESPNSteinLine) March 13, 2012

The 11-year veteran Gasol has averaged 37 minutes or more per game since the 2008-09 NBA season, scoring an average 18.4 points per game and collecting 10.3 rebounds per game during that 4-season stretch.

Chicago currently has SF Luol Deng and PF Carlos Boozer as their two starting starting guards, with C Joakim Noah as the starting center. However, with Deng missing time with his continually nagging wrist injury, and SG Richard Hamilton starting in only 16 games so far this season, the Bulls are hoping to bolster their starting set and bring in the versatile Gasol to help push the team -- which still boasts the NBA's best record -- over the top.

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Dwight Howard Bulls Rumors: Orlando Center Will Sign With Nets This Summer, According To Report

The Chicago Bulls' ever dwindling chances to acquire C Dwight Howard shrank even more on Tuesday. According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, Dwight Howard will not be signing a contract extension with the Orlando Magic in the coming offseason:

"Dwight’s gone, and [Magic CEO] Alex Martins is the only person who doesn’t believe that," a league source with knowledge of Howard’s intentions told Yahoo! Sports.

Howard is in the final year of his contract with the Orlando Magic, and he currently leads the team in rebounds per game (15.0 REB), steals per game (1.5 STL), points per games (21.1 PTS) and field goal percentage (.573). Wojnarowski sources suggest Howard and his six All-Star accolades are headed to the New Jersey Nets next offseason:

Martins has improved the franchise’s relationship with Howard, multiple sources told Yahoo! Sports. But as one source talking to Martins and Howard said: "That’s great, but [Dwight’s] still going to leave."

Said another official, who has been involved in deal talks with Orlando, New Jersey and the agents in the process: "Dwight is going to [expletive] them, and that will be especially true if he doesn’t even ask for the sign-and-trade on July 1, because he wants Brooklyn to keep assets."

The 2012 NBA Trade Deadline is on March 15 at 3:00 p.m. ET.

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Dwight Howard Trade Rumors: Get Over It Chicago, Orlando's Big Man Doesn't Want You

With the NBA trade deadline quickly approaching, talk of the Chicago Bulls acquiring Dwight Howard has again dominated headlines.

Dwight Howard Update: Magic Intrigued By Potential Deal With Chicago

As the NBA trade deadline gets closer, it should come as no surprise that Dwight Howard is being associated with different teams around the league. According to Ken Berger of CBSSports, the Magic would prefer to trade Howard to the Chicago Bulls because of their assets, but apparently Howard isn't interested in coming to the Windy City:

Magic executives are said to be unimpressed with the assets Howard's three preferred teams could provide in a trade, prompting them to engage in a calculated campaign to expand the field of potential suitors beyond the Nets, Mavericks and Lakers. But the team that can make the strongest case for Orlando to depart from its risky strategy of holding onto Howard are the Bulls, who could offer 7-footer Omer Asik, Luol Deng and Carlos Boozer for Howard and Hedo Turkoglu, sources said. The Bulls also could offer a valuable first-round pick from Charlotte -- top-14 protected in this year's draft but but unprotected by 2016.

Such a scenario has gained no traction since Chicago is "not on his list," a person familiar with the situation said of Howard. Without assurances from Howard or his camp that he'd be willing to sign long-term with the Bulls, Chicago executives have exhibited no appetite for trade talks with the Magic. The two teams have spoken, but there's "no type of serious discussions" going on, a person familiar with the situation said.

It will be interesting to see if the Bulls continue to go forward with the group they have, considering the fact they already have a place among the elite in the NBA. However, if Howard might be the key to getting by the Miami Heat, would it be worth picking him up without the guarantee he would sign an extension?

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Dwight Howard, Chicago Bulls Trade Rumors: Derrick Rose Says Howard Rumors Are 'Definitely Getting Old'

The Chicago Bulls might be the best team in the NBA, but that hasn't slowed trade rumors connecting the Bulls to free-agent-to-be Dwight Howard, center for the Orlando Magic. A potential deal for Howard has been discussed since the very start of the season, and as the trade deadline approaches, the entire situation remains the same: Howard is still in Orlando, he doesn't appear to want to go to Chicago, and the Bulls are being passive.

The Magic's meeting with the Bulls at the United Center last night only added fuel to the fire. To the surprise of no one, Rose is starting to get bothered by the constant speculation.

“It’s definitely getting old,” Rose said. “We’re sick and tired of ­hearing it. Like I said, the city speaks for itself. Chicago, marketing wise, is a great city. If someone chose to come here, they would definitely fit. I’m cool with the teammates I have.”

“I don’t pay attention to it unless someone comes to me — like you all and tell me something,” Rose said to a group of reporters. “I don’t know what’s going on or who’s talking to who. You all know more than I do.”

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