Dwight Howard says that he won't sign a contract extension and will become a free agent in 2012
By Josh Robbins, Orlando Sentinel
6:02 p.m. EDT, June 13, 2011
Dwight Howard continues to say he would prefer to remain with the Orlando Magic
for the long haul, but according to NBA.com, he reiterated on Monday
that he will not sign the two-year contract extension the team has
offered and said he will become a free agent in the summer of 2012.
Appearing in Treviso, Italy, as part of an adidas promotional tour, Howard made clear that he has told Magic Owner Rich DeVos and CEO Bob Vander Weide that Orlando's roster needs to improve and have "14 other guys" whose main goal is to win an NBA title.
"Sometimes
guys are there wholeheartedly and then sometimes I've had teammates
allow people getting in their ears and things like that affect the way
that they play and approach the game," Howard said, according to
NBA.com.
Howard's contract runs through the 2012-13 season, but he
can terminate the deal one year early and become a free agent in July
2012.
Magic President of Basketball Operations Otis Smith isn't surprised that Howard plans to become a free agent.
"I expected it," Smith told the Orlando Sentinel on Monday.
"I think free agency is a basketball player's God-given right. It's one
of the things they bargained for, so I expected him to look at all of
his options and become a free agent if that's what he's going to
choose."
Howard's ability to become a free agent gives him
additional leverage as he urges Magic officials to upgrade the roster.
Howard has hinted at dissatisfaction with the team's roster before:
during a Memorial Day barbecue in Orlando and during a charity event on June 2 in Alabama.
But Smith said his goal this offseason isn't any different than other offseasons.
"My
job going into every season and offseason is to make our team better
and give ourselves the best chance there is to win an NBA title," Smith
said. "The problem is, after you get ousted in the first round, you're
expected to have a knee-jerk reaction and make wholesale changes.
"The
fact of the matter is, we made wholesale changes during the season. A
lot of those changes — I wouldn't say they didn't work — I just think
that you have to allow chemistry sometimes to jell, the things the fans
may take for granted. So every year going into the offseason our
objective is to get our team better, and every year during the season
and the offseason we've done that. So I don't have any bones about
trying to get better. That's what we do."
Howard told NBA.com that
he didn't recommend specific roster moves to DeVos and Vander Weide,
but Howard said he discuss fan involvement and the atmosphere inside Amway Center during games.
"There's
no other place I'd rather be besides Orlando," Howard told NBA.com. "As
of right now, that's my home. I just want to stay in Orlando as long as
I can.
"That's the truth. I don't have to keep things calm or
anything. This is how I really feel in my heart. A lot of people want to
see me go other places, but I want to stay in Orlando. I have a
beautiful home there. There are beautiful people down there. My son is
in Orlando. He's getting a lot older and I want to be there to see as
many moments as I can of his life."