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In a press conference intended to be about newly acquired Hornets' forward Gustavo Ayón, reporters pounced on the opportunity to ask Orlando Magic GM Rob Hennigan about Dwight Howard instead.
The response?
Convoluted.
The trade talks are as what Hennigan stated "in a stationary position," which means Orlando will most likely not push any further in dealing Howard just yet.
It's still the same news as yesterday even though the NBA moratorium period has been lifted, which means free agents are permitted to ink contracts with their destined teams on an official basis.
According to Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo! Sports, reports have shown that Brooklyn has reached agreement on a 4-year, $61 million max deal with Brook Lopez.
Wojnarowski also reported that Lopez is expected to sign a deal tonight.
Therefore, if the Nets wished to trade Lopez, they wouldn't be able to until January 15, 2013. This further indicates the hunt for Howard in a Brooklyn Nets uniform is temporarily over.
It may not be music to any Magic fan's ears, but as usual, Hennigan reiterated the same mantra from day one of his tenure as a GM:
"We will do whatever it is that is in the best interest of this organization," Hennigan said. "That's our goal to do whatever we can what this team, what this organization in the best position it can be in."
So, instead of rushing to move Howard out of Orlando as a knee jerk reaction, Hennigan said there would not be a time frame on approaching this situation. Hennigan also happened to converse with Howard today, although he would not reveal any information regarding their dialogue.
"At the end of the day it's about being comfortable with decisions that we're going to make and be comfortable with the basis of those decisions." Hennigan said. "We haven't ruled out anything. We continue to be process driven and we're going to stay committed to that philosophy than put any concrete parameters around anything. We're going to let the information dictate our timeline."
Orlando Sentinel reporter Josh Robbins questioned the accuracy of a report whether if the team is suspending all Dwight Howard trade discussions relating to the franchise not having selected a head coach just yet. Hennigan said the reports were inaccurate.
Apart from all this Dwight Howard frenzy, Hennigan shared his thoughts about Ayón:
"We’re really excited about Gustavo Ayón for a few different reasons." Hennigan said. "He’s a player who brings toughness, versatility to the frontcourt. He brings a savvy and a skill component that we feel will blend well moving forward. He’s a workaholic, he’s someone who loves the game. He’s committed to getting better and committed to approaching the game with a high level of professionalism."
Hennigan also clarified his rationale on why the Magic decided to let go of power forward Ryan Anderson.
"It was not an easy decision." Hennigan said. "It was a difficult decision. It was a decision really based on a strategic mindset. We sort of developed our decision on that. Ryan's a great guy and he has a bright future in this league. This was more about strategically trying to stay flexible as we move forward."