Why Dwight Howard signed with the Houston Rockets

Dwight Howard the former Orlando Magic and L.A. Lakers center has been rumored to be on his way out of the Golden state looking for a golden opportunity. The last two seasons have been a nightmare for Howard who has seen two coaches fired, two coast, and soon to have two fans bases hating him but can you blame him for wanting out of L.A. The Lakers seemed to do everything in their power to discourage Dwight Howard from possibly resigning with the team even though they really didn't mean to. The L.A. Lakers brought in the wrong coach to replace Mike Brown, they didn't address the fact that Dwight Howard and Pau Gasol never played well together, the offense that Mike D'antoni runs never found a way to incorporate Howard’s game, and Kobe Bryant kept talking even when he was injured. The fact is Dwight Howard could not get use to the big market atmosphere that L.A. had to offer. Howard seemed scared most of last season, and it showed in his play on the court. He doesn’t want to be the man, he wants to be the sidekick. So when you look at the teams who have a chance of getting Dwight Howard it’s a three team race unless the L.A. Lakers can get back into the Howard sweepstakes. The Dallas Mavericks, Atlanta Hawks, and Houston Rockets have the best chances of signing Howard, but in reality it’s a two man race between the Rockets and Mavericks.

Why Atlanta Hawks don’t have a chance

The Atlanta Hawks have seen there share of misses in free agency in recent years. The team currently has it’s top two players from a year ago testing the free agent market. Jeff Teague and Josh Smith both have a chance of moving on, but nothing may happen until the team is officially out of the Dwight Howard race. The only way that the Hawks have a chance of landing Howard is adding another superstar to the mix. If the Atlanta Hawks could lure Chris Paul from the Clippers, that could give Howard a reason to come to the ATL. The problem is that Paul is unlikely to leave the L.A. Clippers now that the team has Doc Rivers coaching it. Atlanta is Dwight Howard’s home town, but without the chance of winning a title he may not be coming home soon.

Maybe Dallas

The Dallas Mavericks present a great home for Howard. Maverick’s star forward Dirk Nowitzki has been public that he would love to Dwight Howard sign with Dallas. Dallas could present the cap space to sign Howard and also have cap space to sign a top free agent in 2014. The Mavs have a great owner, great fans, and a long term plan to make Dwight Howard a centerpiece for years to come. There is about a 50% chance that Dwight Howard signs with the Dallas Mavericks.

Houston we don’t have a problem

The Houston Rockets have done a great job in recent years of putting together a good young team. Lead by James Harden, Chandler Parsons,and Jeremy Lin the Rockets lead the NBA in scoring last season. Dwight Howard would be a great fit for a team that struggled in low post offense last season. Howard a could be a 20 point 10 rebound guy who would also clog the lane for opposing teams looking to score on the inside. The move could take the Houston Rockets who were an eight seed in the west to one of the top five teams in the league.