NBA roundup: Lakers reportedly pushing to acquire Howard
The Lakers and Magic have rekindled talks that would send center Dwight Howard to Los Angeles, Yahoo Sports reports.
Howard, in the final year of his contract, hasn't committed to signing a long-term deal with the Lakers, which general manager Mitch Kupchak would consider a non-starter in a proposed deal that could involve Lakers' center Andrew Bynum.
Yahoo reported the two sides were meeting Tuesday with the Lakers "pushing hard" to land Howard.
More than a week of talks with the Brooklyn Nets, to whom Howard said publicly he wanted to be traded, were fruitless. First-year Magic general manager Rob Hennigan asked Howard to reconsider his trade demands, but the five-time All-NBA center refused.
Atlanta, Houston and the Lakers were reportedly in the mix as fall-back options, but Orlando prefers not to take long-term financial commitments back in a trade. Bynum, 24, is in the final year of his contract and might not agree to a long-term deal with the Magic, according to reports.
The Lakers traded two first-round picks to the Phoenix Suns for Steve Nash last week and don't have the same draft assets or salary-cap space as the Rockets.
-----The Brooklyn Nets re-signed forward Kris Humphries to a two-year, $24 million contract.
Humphries' deal is fully guaranteed, and gives the Nets an entire starting lineup of players signed or acquired since the end of last season. The only addition is shooting guard Joe Johnson, who was acquired from the Hawks and is owed $89 million over the next four seasons.
Humphries was rumored to be in multiple proposed deals as a sign-and-trade chip, but unwilling to accept a one-year guaranteed offer, he helped pave his way back to the Nets. He averaged 13.8 points and 11.0 rebounds per game in 2011-12.
---The New York Knicks plan to let Jeremy Lin go to the Houston Rockets, the New York Times reported Tuesday, citing sources close to the situation.
The Knicks have until 11:59 ET Tuesday to match Lin's three-year, $25.1 million offer sheet with the Rockets, which would allow the Knicks to retain him. But apparently they have decided not to match the offer.
The Knicks are expected to announce their decision Tuesday evening.
In recent days, two people familiar with the situation had said it was unlikely Lin would be kept, according to the Times. But they both said the decision ultimately would be made by James L. Dolan, the Madison Square Garden chairman.
--The Dallas Mavericks and shooting guard O.J. Mayo agreed to a two-year contract late Monday and joins point guard Darren Collison, power forward Elton Brandon, center Chris Kaman and shooting guard Dahntay Jones on the new-look roster in Dallas.
Mayo played off the bench with the Grizzlies last season and could step right into a starting role.
The second year of Mayo's contract with the Mavericks is a player option.
Mayo averaged 12.6 points per game in 2011-12 but shot just 40.8 percent from the field.
--The Clippers agreed to a two-year deal with free agent forward Grant Hill.
Hill, 39, played for the Phoenix Suns for the past five seasons and has also played for the Pistons and Orlando Magic in his 17-year career.
Hill had discussions with the Lakers and Knicks and was rumored to be an option for the Heat.
