Report: Magic seek package similar to ‘Melo deal for Howard

Orlando still has not decided that they are going to trade Dwight Howard — in fact, they seem to be leaning toward keeping him through the trade deadline and the end of the season — but if they do move him they are letting teams know what they want:

A haul like Denver got last year for Carmelo Anthony.

I would like to drive a Maserati Spyder. The odds are about the same as Orlando getting that kind of package, but that’s what they want, reports Ken Berger at CBSSports.com.

What Orlando is seeking if it makes a deal for the All-Star center is a package similar to what the Nuggets received for Anthony at the 2011 trade deadline: multiple good, young players and draft picks. Orlando executives view the Denver model as a middle ground between blowing up a contender and starting over with draft picks and reaching for veteran All-Stars whose contracts ultimately could hinder the recovery from a Howard trade.

Representatives of three teams in the mix for Howard – either on his list (Nets, Lakers and Mavericks) or among teams willing to gamble on trading for him in the hopes that he can be persuaded to stay beyond this season – told CBSSports.com Thursday that the Magic have not decided which path to pursue (to keep him or trade him).

Remember that Denver was holding out for a good deal last year, trying to create a bidding war as Anthony worked to force his way to New York. As the pressure built on the Knicks then GM Donnie Walsh remained calm but owner James Dolan stepped in and set up a deal that sent Danilo Gallinari, Raymond Felton, Wilson Chandler, Timofey Mozgov one first-round pick and two second-round picks to Denver. (New York also got Chauncey Billups in that deal.) The Knicks are still trying to rebuild their group of role players around their stars enough to win after shipping them all away.

Orlando isn’t getting a deal like that. And not just because the Nets aren’t owned by Dolan. Berger explains.

The Mavericks and Lakers, teams loaded with high-priced veterans, do not have the kind of assets the Magic want for Howard. The Nets, with 24-year-old 7-footer Brook Lopez and promising rookie guard MarShon Brooks, come closer – though two people familiar with the Orlando strategy told CBSSports.com Thursday that none of the three teams has assets that would entice the Magic to part with Howard. Perhaps this is why Orlando officials have been more forthcoming in recent days about what they’d want in a package for Howard, and why at least one rival GM interpreted this shift in posture as an indication that Orlando understands it needs to create competition and prime the pump on the bidding war.

Something that is happening out there is teams are contacting the Nets and other potential trade partners with the Magic trying to work their way into a three-team deal for Howard.

One interesting potential trade for Howard could be with the Atlanta Hawks, where Josh Smith has asked to be traded. Berger suggests it would be a deal of Smith and Al Horford for Howard (with other pieces around the sides). The Magic may like those plans, but the Hawks are already committed to one oversized deal in Joe Johnson and may no have the financial standing to take on Howard, too. Plus, there are questions of if Howard would want to play there — the Hawks could not make that deal without assurances from Howard he would stay.

Much to the disgust of Derrick Rose there will be a lot of other Howard trade talk — Rockets, Warriors — in the next week but at the end of the day, the Magic may well keep him.