Breaking Down Why LA Lakers Won’t Sign-and-Trade Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard is taking over the basketball world one summer at a time. After last year's never-ending saga that resulted in him putting on a Los Angeles Lakers uniform, we're now waiting to see if he'll change jerseys once more. 

If he does, it'll be by signing as a free agent. The Lakers will never complete a sign-and-trade that sends D12 to another team. And last I checked, it was impossible to sign-and-trade a player to the same location they were already in.  

Five potential options have been lurking during the early portion of the offseason. Howard can remain with the Lakers, or he can sign with the Houston Rockets, Dallas Mavericks, Atlanta Hawks or Golden State Warriors. The last would require a sign-and-trade, which essentially eliminates it from the list of possibilities. 

Normally, a sign-and-trade is a fantastic option for teams looking to receive talent in return for a player they're sure to lose. It's a way to at least get something, which is usually better than nothing. 

Take the Hawks, for example. 

Once general manager Danny Ferry is certain that he wants to jettison Josh Smith, he'll turn to a sign-and-trade deal, hoping that he can get a team like the Rockets to give him a few of their many assets. By doing so, the Rockets can offer Smoove an extra year and more money, since he'd technically be signing with his original team. It benefits the player and the team giving him up, while the team receiving him obviously gets the most coveted asset. 

The Lakers, however, are no normal team. Plus, they're in a bit of a unique situation. 

Even though the Dubs could offer them some intriguing players in return, it's still in the team's best interest to let Howard walk rather than trading him away and getting something back. 

 

The Offer Itself



Even on the surface, a sign-and-trade deal isn't g...

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