Losers From The NBA Trade Deadline

Houston Rockets

Dwight Howard’s name was constantly circulating through the rumor mill leading up to the deadline. It’s clear that the Rockets and Howard will go their separate ways once the July 1 hits and he declines his option for next season in order to become an unrestricted free agent.

The Rockets were expected to deal Howard so they wouldn’t end up empty-handed once Howard becomes a free agent, but as the deadline clock continued to tick, they couldn’t find a deal worth doing. According to RealGM, Charlotte offered Houston Al Jefferson and Spencer Hawes in exchange for Howard, but Houston declined.

Boston and Miami were also involved in discussions to possibly go after Howard, but those talks collapsed quickly. No teams were willing to risk sending assets for Howard, who can be looked at as a two-month rental and a 30-year-old with back and knee issues.

It is assumed that Howard will look for a max contract this summer, which could be a pipe dream in itself, but it wouldn’t be surprising to see a team actually throw one at him if they end up striking out with every other big fish in the free agency pool.

At the end of the day, the Rockets only deal was sending Donatas Motiejunas and Marcus Thornton to Detroit for a protected 2016 first-round pick and Joel Anthony, whom they ultimately traded to Philadelphia. It’s safe to say that Houston came away with absolutely nothing during the deadline except a bigger headache and empty hands that will come this summer.

We will have to see if they can fix the problem as the season comes down the home stretch.

Next: Utah