Dwight Howard's father made news yesterday, weighing in on his son's upcoming free agency and the way he gets along with Mike D'Antoni and Kobe Bryant, among other topics. The younger Howard declined to address Dwight Sr.'s remarks, and Ric Bucher of 95.7 The Game is not surprised. Bucher says the relationship between Howard and son is a rocky one, and that Dwight Sr. has given several inaccurate off-the-record stories about his son to reporters over the years (Sulia link). It hasn't been easy to separate fact and fiction with the seemingly mercurial Howard over the past two years of his NBA career, but we're sure to hear plenty more about him between now and the day he inks his next contract this summer.
In the meantime, there's more about D12 and other Pacific Division figures right here:
- Howard never wanted to go to L.A., according to Jason Lloyd of the Akron Beacon Journal, who hears the Magic were threatening to trade him to the Lakers if he didn't decline the early-termination option on his contract at last year's trade deadline.
- Though Grant Hill is not ruling out a return to the Clippers, Brian Schmitz of the Orlando Sentinel is convinced this is the final season for the 40-year-old, based on Hill's comments to him this week.
- If Sacramento mayor Kevin Johnson can work with Mark Mastrov and Ron Burkle to mount a credible bid for the Kings, the league will be facing an unprecedented showdown between two cities seeking the franchise, observes Ailene Voisin of the Sacramento Bee.
- Fellow Bee scribe Mark Glover examines some of the 20 local investors who've committed $1MM apiece to become minority owners if the Kings stay in Sacramento.
