Written by: Matthew Blunk
Wake up, America.
The "Dwightmare" is over.
A trade sending Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard to the Los Angeles Lakers
was finalized and approved by the NBA on Friday. The four-team deal
sent Howard, forward Earl Clark, and point guard Chris Duhon to L. A.; Philadelphia 76ers swingman Andre Iguodala to the Denver Nuggets;
Denver guard Arron Afflalo, forward Al Harrington, Sixers rookie
forward Moe Harkless, center Nikola Vucecic, Lakers forward Josh
McRoberts, swingman Christian Eyenga, three first-round picks, and two
second-round picks to Orlando; and Lakers center Andrew Bynum and Magic guard Jason Richardson to Philadelphia.
This convoluted-as-a-David-Lynch-film deal has major ramifications
for the rest of the Association. It means the Lakers have acquired the
best big man in the game while also managing to retain Pau Gasol
(Orlando surely wished to avoid Gasol's contract to better suit their
rebuilding phase). Which, in turn, means the Lakers will boast a
front-line of Gasol and Howard. No other power forward-center
combination in basketball comes close to that. The purple-and-gold have
reloaded in a big way this summer, also bringing in former Phoenix Suns
point guard Steve Nash. Nash and Howard should make huge impacts on the
team, particularly on the offense end. Nash will orchestrate a revamped
offense, potentially with "Princeton" principles. Howard will man the
paint and provide Nash with a 6'11", freakishly-athletic, new
pick-and-roll partner. Oh yeah, and they still have Kobe Bryant. Almost
forgot.
For Denver, adding Iguodala does not make the Nuggets a championship
contender, but it certainly improves the team. He will fit right in
with the youthful, athletic Nuggets. Iguodala is one of the best wing
defenders in the NBA, and he can be something of a point forward. George
Karl wants to out-run opponents, which plays right into Iggy's
strengths.
The Sixers get a franchise center they can build around (provided he
re-signs next summer). Bynum took a significant step forward last
season, making his first All-Star team and becoming a reliable scorer as
well as elite post defender. Philadelphia has put together a few young
building blocks now, with Bynum, Jrue Holiday, Evan Turner, Thaddeus
Young, and Lavoy Allen. Is this core good enough to compete? Time will
tell. And Bynum will have a lot to say about it.
And so now we come to the Orlando Magic. Did 30-year-old general
manager Rob Hennigan get hosed? Did he outsmart himself? I can
understand the Magic considering financial flexibility and future draft
picks as top priorities, but the trade the Houston Rockets proposed
(Kevin Martin's expiring contract, Chandler Parsons, Marcus Morris,
Patrick Patterson, and a choice of one or two from the 2012 draft class
of Jeremy Lamb, Royce White, and Terrence Jones, in addition to multiple
future first-round picks) blew this accepted four-team deal out of the
water. Hennigan is now left with three draft picks likely out of the
lottery and some decent cap space. This is the best he could come up
with? Even the most optimistic of Magic fans have to be disappointed.
Somewhere, Nuggets GM Masai Ujiri (architect of the Carmelo Anthony
trade) is laughing heartily.
So there you have it, folks - it's all over. Howard is a Laker,
Bynum a Sixer, and Iggy a Nugget. And the Magic are left wondering what
just happened.
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