The Dwight Howard circus is now at a tenuous impasse, as the Orlando Magic wait for an offer they find suitable while the soon to be free agent continues to demand a deal.
While the Brooklyn Nets and Los Angeles Lakers have been the two most aggressive teams in pursuing Howard, the Dallas Mavericks have been looming in the background of the entire melodrama. Now, according to a report from Mike Fisher of Dallasbasketball.com, they have had discussions with Orlando about their recalcitrant superstar.
Howard's people have repeatedly cited Dallas as a back-up plan, since the Mavericks, unlike the Nets or the Lakers, would have the cap space to sign Howard outright in 2013.
However, Dallas doesn't have much to offer Orlando in terms of trade assets, as they don't have extra salary cap space to absorb any of the Magic's bad contracts or the type of high-upside young players a team like the Houston Rockets could dangle.
The same can be said for both the Lakers and the Nets, which is why the Magic are in such a pickle right now. If none of the three teams Howard has said he will accept a trade with can offer them a good deal, why would a team like Houston, with no re-assurance that they can keep the All-NBA caliber center long-term, mortgage their future to Orlando?
All Dallas can do is stay by the phone and hope, as they may end up backing their way into one of the three best players in the NBA.
For all the latest news and notes on the Mavericks free agency plans, stay tuned to the SB Nation Dallas storystream as well as Mavs Moneyball.