According to ESPN, Dwight Howard will join the Los Angeles Lakers and will sign a non-guaranteed contract.
Six years later, Dwight Howard is getting a second chance in L.A. pic.twitter.com/sb1zplZzv7
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) August 23, 2019
DeMarcus Cousins suffered a torn ACL in his left knee this summer, and will likely sit out the entire 2019-20 campaign. Anthony Davis is not expected to play significant minutes at center, so the Lakers and Howard really needed each other. Howard had problems with his back previously in his career, but now, his surgically repaired back is healthy and he also lost 25 pounds to get into better shape.
Per league sources, Howard will surrender $2.6 million of his $5.6 million guaranteed salary to the Memphis Grizzlies in the buyout. He will get an opportunity to earn back the $2.6 million on his veteran’s minimum contract with the Lakers, but only if he remains on the roster beyond Jan. 7. The Grizzlies never counted on Howard following his move from the Washington Wizards, and were interested in either trading or waiving him.
Sources: Dwight Howard surrendered nearly $2.6M of his $5.6M guaranteed salary to Memphis in buyout. He can earn $2.6M on his vet minimum deal with Lakers — if he survives on roster past early January. Ideal outcome for Grizzlies, who never intended to bring Howard to camp. https://t.co/uLglUip1JT
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 24, 2019
The Lakers hold leverage over Howard as they can cut him before the NBA’s Jan. 7 deadline without any cost to the team. Los Angeles now has a full roster of 15 players, and Howard will officially join next week when he clear waivers.
