For Magic, the time to trade Howard has come

There’s little doubt that Orland Magic Center Dwight Howard is one of the biggest starts in the NBA. With the combination of charisma and skill he has displayed to this point in his career, once memorably flying through the air in a Superman cape during the 2008 dunk contest, it’s easy to see why NBA fans are enamored with the league’s best big man.

Unfortunately, things haven’t been quite so congenial with his relationship with Orlando’s front office. Howard, who has amassed several NBA and franchise records since he was drafted in 2004, has become disenfranchised with the team’s management, and has consistently flip-flopped on whether he would like to stay in Orlando. How can someone consistently flip-flop? Consider this argument from NBCSport’s ProBasketballTalk reporter Matt Moore:

“So Howard, after claiming he wanted a trade last winter, then rescinding it, then putting it back out there, then saying he’d stay for another year, then backing out, then finally signing his opt-in, wants out again. At some point, if you’re the Magic, this isn’t worth it, right? It’s just too big of a headache? Or back ache? Or pain in the backside?”

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Moore is right. While Howard has displayed a penchant for petulance during his time in Orlando, new Magic GM Rob Hennigan is ultimately the one who will need to cut anchor and guide his team in a new direction. Although Howard’s all-star play has proven valuable to the franchise, the Magic, in return for trading the increasingly-rare “Complete Big,” will receive multiple good players and a haul of draft picks for the future.

Two teams that seem to be consistently in the mix for Howard are the Brooklyn Nets and the Los Angeles Lakers. Though the Lakers seems to be a long-shot, especially after acquiring Steve Nash in a surprise signing on the 4^th of July, Jackie Pepper of CSSNE.com reported on her personal blog that the Lake Show has informed at least one player he is part of the talks and could be traded at any moment. Because of Howard’s recent surgery for a herniated disk, and issues over the length of Howard’s contract, the Lakers have kept relatively quiet in regards to Howard this off-season, but with Lakers’ Super-GM Mitch Kupchak in charge, things can change fast.

While the speculation about one of the game’s most talented players going out to LA is somewhat typical for the NBA off-season, the moves that New Jersey are making demonstrate just how interested they are in Orlando’s big man. In trying to team Howard up with Derron Williams and the newly acquired Joe Johnson, the Nets are doing a bit of financial maneuvering to put themselves in the best position for a trade. But with Howard earning $19 million, Williams earning $17 million, Johnson earning $19 million and Gerald Wallace set for $10 million next season, it’s hard to see how the Nets plan on filling out the remaining seven roster spots with any decent talent while staying under the Hard Salary Cap line, which set at $74.3 million.

Regardless of the Nets’ ability to put talent around Howard, or the Lakers’ concerns over his contract and injuries, moving one of the NBA’s best players is their best move. Aside from Jameer Nelson, the Magic are not ready to truly compete against teams like Boston, Miami and Chicago in the NBA’s Eastern Conference.

Once Howard is gone, Orlando will finally have the opportunity, and the resources, to focus on what’s important – putting together a solid team – rather than accommodating your lone superstar’s every wish and desire.

For Hennigan, that time should be now.