Moving Howard Would Equal 'Rebuilding' Time

The Mavs have their new tough coach. Now it's time to address Dirk's displeasure and figure out how to move ahead. After last year's first-round exit, their front office rallied to get Jason Kidd, which didn't work. Now, after a second consecutive round one flop, the cry is for change, change, more change!

As briefly mentioned yesterday, most of this focuses on Josh Howard, the herb tokin', party havin', carelessly frank swingman whose play last year vacillated between All-Star and bench player. In the Dallas Morning News, David Moore thinks Howard's days are numbered:

As for Nowitzki and Howard being one of the better forward tandems in the league, that was the case the previous two seasons. Not this one. Howard's best games came early in the year when Nowitzki struggled and late in the season when Nowitzki was out. He didn't complement or play off of Nowitzki the way he had in previous seasons. That's a concern.

There's also the lingering rumor, this time in Dallas Mavericks Blog, that Dirk himself might want Howard moved. Now, let's pause, and look over to another Western team, the Denver Nuggets. Supposedly, they've discussed moving All-Star forward Carmelo Anthony, one of the league's more marketable stars. From a Denver team that, for all the talent in the world, has never found an identity. That's when you frantically start shopping All-Stars. Not when that identity has just been lost for a year.

Look, Dirk, Dallas, local reporters, and Rick Carlisle's super-ego: Things could be much worse. You bring in a new coach to press reset, take what's there and get it on the right track. Giving up on Howard for the sake of further change misses the point of firing Avery Johnson: It was in part to stabilize the clubhouse, and restore the club's chemistry, after this spring's collapse. Too much over-eager change tips the balance from reorientation to rebuilding, and no one wants that.

This post originally appeared on the Sporting Blog. For more, see The Sporting Blog Archives.