Let the Dwightmare begin again. Rumors are swiling that Dwight may possibly not resign with the Los Angeles Lakers and the reason seems to be none other than Coach Mike D'Antoni.
Howard feels that D'Antoni's offense doesn't cater to his skills. D'Antoni focuses on a quick paced, run-and-gun style offense, attempting to get as many points as possible. He had his best run with a younger Steve Nash and Amar'e Stoudemire when coaching the Phoenix Suns, but those days seem to be long gone as D'Antoni's recent teams have struggled.
During his tenure with the New York Knicks, he had the team focus on three pointers, which is another part of D'Antoni's coaching style that doesn't fit any of Howard's skills. Howard is a post player and he likes the ability to run the show wherever he plays. However, this is Kobe Bryant's team until he retires and as long as D'Antoni is coaching in Los Angeles, Howard can't see himself playing in L.A.
Why the Lakers signed D'Antoni is still a mystery. The Lakers are tall with Pau Gasol and Howard in the paint and they're old as Nash, Bryant and Metta World Peace are the players working the perimeter. World Peace was one of the few players that saw the benefits of the D'Antoni Offense as his perimeter shooting improved from the prior season.
However, due to either poor recovery from injury or the coaching style of D'Antoni, Howard posted some of his worst numbers in 2012-2013 while playing with the Lakers. He averaged 17.1 points and 12.4 rebounds in 76 games played for the Lakers. Those were his lowest stats since 2006-2007 when Howard was starting to dominate the league.
Rumors also have it that the Houston Rockets are the favorite organization to lock up the big man. However, with sharp shooters like James Harden and Chandler Parsons, the Rockets do a lot of perimeter shooting and run a fast paced offense with Jeremy Lin at the point, which adheres to D'Antoni's coaching style. This could ultimately turn Howard away.
The other possible destination for Howard would be the Dallas Mavericks, but they have to clear some cap space and possibly trade their 2013 NBA Draft pick in order to make room for Howard's salary.
