Stan Van Gundy has had to put up with a lot of crap for a coach with a career .651 winning percentage.
Van Gundy molded the play of young men at six different colleges from 1981 until 1995. When he coached the Miami Heat in 2005, he was jettisoned by a coaching icon who wanted to prove he could literally come out of the general manager's booth and win a title. In 2008, Van Gundy was called the master of panic by a former Magic center that used the franchise as toilet paper when he left for Los Angeles.
But none of it can hold a candle to the tornado of feces that was conjured up by the man with the biggest shoulders on the planet.
Dwight Howard has been the poster child for NBA players who can't get out of their own way. It has felt like the 'will he stay and be good or screw the Magic over?' question has enveloped the entire season.
Howard's play (20.6 points, 14.4 rebounds, 2.2 blocks per game) has been great during the self generated controversy. His rebounds have never been higher than during a shortened season that has been dragged out by sources questioning will he or won't he leave. Howard's flip flopping ability challenges Mitt Romney's.
Maybe he is better when he is torturing management and fans by publicly pondering his future. Perhaps Howard has to make a list of possible teams he wants to play for for him to have his third best scoring season. If that is the case, teams should either sign Howard for eternity or avoid making him the face of their franchise.
There is no questioning that Howard is the best center in the NBA right now. Even if his range has not expanded much beyond dunking and closer. The center position in the NBA is historically weak, and Howard resembles the closest thing to the ghosts of Shaq, Kareem, and Wilt in today's game.
Howard's talent undeniable, his behavior is inexcusable.
There is a better example of how Howard should be handling himself two spots above his team in the standings. Rajon Rondo had his fair share of trade speculation in the first half of the year, yet he kept his mouth shut and let his play determine his paycheck. As great of a season Howard has been having on paper, his words and lack of ability to quell the issue in public have haunted his club for the entire season.
Perhaps the more pathetic part of this situation is Magic management. A multi million dollar franchise run by plenty of people should never be dominated by one employee. There was no reasonable trade market for Howard because there was no good counter offer; but Howard's name remained on the trade block. If you can't get good value for a guy, don't offer to trade him because it will generate distraction.
Magic management didn't get that part and now they are left with the ruins of their credibility.
Howard is holding his team hostage, and anything short of being able to run the franchise himself will result in his departure. And a man who came to the NBA straight out of high school is going to enjoy being openly courted in free agency. Instead of college campuses, teams will pitch their cities as wholes to make D12 want to live there. And when that time comes, Howard will lavish in the spotlight surrounding the debate as to where he will be taking his talents.
But as usual, teams are so blinded by talent that character takes a back seat. If Lakers, Bulls, Celtics, Nets, and Mavericks are willing to make Howard the player a crazy offer, they should be questioning on how much to invest in Howard the man. Hypothetically speaking, there is nothing to stop Howard from pulling this crap for his new team.
So good luck to whoever wins the Dwight Howard sweepstakes, they are going to need it.
