This Dwightmare Just Won’t End

Dwight Howard has made himself into the NBA's newest villain. It's a role I'm sure he never wanted or envisioned himself having, but he made this bed so now he has to lie in it. It was dizzying trying to keep what he wanted from the Orlando Magic straight.

The Magic were going to let him have control because he wanted to leave. Then Dwight wanted to stay a day later. Then Stan Van Gundy said Howard tried to get him fired. Dwight's season came to end because of back surgery and he's been in Los Angeles ever since.

The whole thing became so tiresome it just really irked NBA fans all over the place and made Dwight turn from smiling, fun superstar to loathsome, selfish and irritating.

Now the latest rumor is that the Lakers and Cavs are in talks to try to facilitate a trade that would send Howard to L.A. (where he says he won't sign an extension) and Andrew Bynum to Cleveland with a bunch of other dudes to all three to make the deal work. It probably won't work because it's unlikely that Howard will change his mind (ha!) about signing long term in L.A. and it's hard to fathom Byum agreeing long term with the Cavaliers.

There is only one person to blame for all of this and it's Howard. He's the one who decided to sign on for one more year, foolishly, instead of just going into free agency like he wanted so badly.

Maybe he's got bad decision making people around him. A reporter who was on The Herd on ESPN radio this morning said that he saw Dwight at the Dodgers game last night in Los Angeles. Dwight was wearing a Dodgers hat, but when his handler saw people taking pictures, he snatched the hat off Dwight's head.

When the reporters started asking questions about possibly going to LA, the reporter said Dwight was smiling and seemingly willing to talk, but the handler snapped 'no questions!' That's probably not the best way to start repairing a badly damaged reputation as one of the league's nice guys.

If anyone can pull a trade off for Howard, it would seem to be the Lakers, who have always seemed to make impossible moves possible. If not, then he'll remain in Orlando next season and we'll have to hear trade talk about him non-stop. Let's hope it doesn't come to that.