Dwight Howard has been traded again.
The center lasted one season with the Hornets after the team agreed to trade Howard to the Nets on Wednesday. The Nets will receive center Timofey Mozgov, two future second-round picks and cash in a deal that will be finalized after the July 6 NBA moratorium. ESPN first reported the trade.
The move comes exactly one year after Howard, from Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy, was traded from his hometown Hawks to the Hornets in Travis Schlenk’s first move as general manager. Howard signed with the Hawks as a free agent in July 2016 on a three-year $70 million contract and was tearful his introductory press conference about his return home. After a disappointing regular season, Howard’s playing time in a first-round playoff series loss to the Wizards was greatly diminished. He did not play in the fourth quarter of the series-clinching loss.
Howard was traded from the Hawks on June 20 for Miles Plumlee and Marco Bellinelli. Plumlee had three years and $38 million remaining on his contract at the time of the trade.
Trading Howard is the first significant move by new Hornets general manager Mitch Kupchak. Howard is due to make $23.8 million next season. Mozgov has two years and $33 million remaining on his contract.
Howard, 32, will be playing for his sixth NBA team after the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 draft played for the Magic and Lakers before the Rockets, Hawks and Hornets. Howard is an eight-time All-Star and three-time NBA defensive player of the year.
There was concern in the Hawks organization about Howard’s negative locker room presence with a roster of young players, the primary reason for the trade. The Hornets failed to make the playoffs last season following the addition of Howard.
Howard will enter his 15th NBA season and has career averages of 17.4 points and 12.7 rebounds per game. He is 14th on the league’s all-time rebound list with 13,101.
