According to ESPN The Magazine's Chris Broussard last week, L.A.'s higher-ups have already made it known that Howard will remain a Laker past this month's trade deadline:
Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak has told Dwight Howard he will not be traded before the Feb. 21 trade deadline, according to league sources.
The patience displayed by the Lakers' front office this winter is shockingly inconsistent with the approach it took just a few months ago, five games into the season, when it decided Mike Brown wasn't getting it done.
After a 1-4 start this past fall, Brown was canned. Fast-forward three months later, and the Lakers are still a losing team, but now one in danger of missing the playoffs altogether.
This seems like the perfect time to revisit this quote from Kupchak after the Brown firing (via ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramona Shelburne):
The bottom line is that the team is not winning at the pace that we expected this team to win and we didn't see improvement. We wish Mike well and we're sorry it ended this way. So, we've decided to move in another direction and make a change.
Nonsensically, the Lakers are now willing to let the situation play out and accept a below-.500 product. If the Lakers are improving under Mike D'Antoni, I might add they are doing so at a snail-like pace.
It must be pointed out that "sources have told ESPNLosAngeles.com's Ramona Shelburne that the Lakers are 'very confident' Howard will remain with the team this summer," according to Broussard.
With that being said, let's not forget who this is. We're talking about Dwight Howard—the same player that flipped and flopped last...
Article Source: Bleacher Report - Los Angeles Lakers
