Dwight Howard says rumors he’s unhappy in Houston are ‘lies’

Dwight Howard denies “lies” that he is “extremely unhappy” with the Houston Rockets.

Dwight Howard rarely seems to be happy. Whether his offensive role isn’t big enough or he’s not the main star, his body language and the way he carries himself often suggests he’s got something to complain about. And with reports on Tuesday saying that he’s “extremely unhappy” with the Houston Rockets due to being “second fiddle” to James Harden, his complacency was supposedly enough to cause a potential trade.

With that in mind, and Chris Sheridan of Sheridan Hoops reporting that the Rockets may wish to trade Howard before the end of the season (to the Miami Heat for Hassan Whiteside), it seemed as though Dwight was once again displeased with his situation. However, as has been reported by Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle, Howard has adamantly denied such rumors by calling them “lies”:

"Howard called the report “lies” and said he has never expressed any dissatisfaction with his role.“I haven’t said anything to anybody about anything,” Howard said. “People make up lies and rumors. That’s never been my focus. I’m trying to get these guys to play better and get myself to play better.“People are going to say what they got to say to get a story out. People are always going to come up with some rumor and lies. That’s what it is. I can’t focus on that. And I don’t want my teammates to focus on that.”"

While it’s fair for Howard to ignore rumors and focus on the games at hand, especially while the Rockets have struggled to a mere 12-14 record, it still doesn’t resolve the fact that he may be unhappy in Houston. Of course he isn’t going to admit that to the press, unless he gets wildly frustrated and publicly demands a trade. Yet, it’s safe to say that probably won’t be happening.

So, with that in mind, it’s hard to take Howard’s word for it. The only way we can find out what’s really going on is letting these trade rumors develop to see if anything else comes to light.

In the meantime, Steve Kyler of Basketball Insiders has shared some insight via Twitter, saying that the Rockets are not looking to make any major moves and they are not actively shopping Howard.

The idea of a Dwight Howard-Hassan Whiteside trade is an intriguing one. The Heat don’t want to lose Whiteside for nothing in free agency next summer, as they can’t currently afford to give him the max contract that his elite defense has earned him, which makes Howard a reasonable backup plan at center if they look to make a deal for him now. As for the Rockets, they would get a center who is four years younger than Howard with superior defense and no injury or ego concerns.

Until any more reports surface, though, we really can’t be sure what may happen. That’s just the fun of NBA trade season.