Deron Williams Officially Going to Brooklyn; Dwight Howard Worth the Trouble With 'Big 2?'
Deron Williams officially accepted a five-year contract to return to the Brooklyn Nets where free agent shooting guard Joe Johnson will reportedly join him. While many are questioning whether Orlando Magic Center Dwight Howard will join the team next, the question remains: is "Superman" worth all of the trouble?
While Brooklyn Nets fans were likely celebrating the news of Williams and Johnson joining the team, Howard made headlines with alleged trade scenarios involving teams like the Los Angeles Lakers and the Atlanta Hawks. The Lakers had the best bait for Orlando if they decided to trade forward Metta World Peace and Center Andrew Bynum, according to ESPN reports.
Peace could be a solid role player, but Bynum could play Howard's position well while averaging a double-double and helping the team rebuild after such a tough loss to their roster. However, Atlanta was also thrown into the fray because it is Howard's hometown where his good friend Josh Smith plays at power forward.
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Still, Brooklyn has been Howard's coveted location for a few seasons, according to several reports. ESPN analyst Chris Broussard reported that the Magic's general manager Rob Hennigan met with the team's current Center last week and asked for a trade to the Brooklyn Nets.
However, the Nets may not have enough to deal in their trade and may be willing to give up too much in order to acquire Howard. The Nets are reportedly willing to offer guard Marshon Brooks, forward Kris Humphries and center Brook Lopez to the Magic in exchange for the coveted Center once called "Superman."
While Howard boasts an impressive stat line with an average of 20.6 points, 14.5 rebounds and 2.1 blocks during the 2011-2012 season, the Nets will be forced to give up three solid players in three different positions.
Brooks contributes 12.6 points to each game, Humphries averages a double-double and
Lopez averaged 20 points last season. The team is reportedly also willing to give up first-round draft picks in 2013, 2015, 2017 – days after they made a deal for Johnson that cost them the expiring contracts of Jordan Farmar, Johan Petro, Anthony Morrow, Jordan Williams and DeShawn Stevenson.
However, the team now has Johnson and Williams together along with small forward Gerald Wallace who averaged 13.8 points and 6.7 rebounds for the team last season. So the question remains, is it worth dismantling the rest of the Nets' frontcourt for one player?
While the Nets and Magic executive offices are mulling over the decision, Howard has reportedly been broken up about how the media has portrayed him before his decision has even been announced.
"He's a little frustrated...he's just not looking good publicly," Jarrod Rudolph, writer of RealGM.com and friend to Howard told ESPN. "He's trying to grow through the process. He's trying to stay as positive as he can and let this process work itself out."
