Just days after acquiring Dwight Howard in a trade from the Charlotte Hornets, the Brooklyn Nets are negotiating a buyout with the eight-time All-Star - according to ESPN's Chris Haynes.
This report comes after Adrian Wojnarowki of ESPN reported that the Hornets agreed to send Howard to Brooklyn in exchange for Timofey Mozgov and a pair of second-round draft selections. Wojnarowski noted the transaction can't be finalized until July 6, however.
With that, Howard is set to join a stacked free agent class that could also include LeBron James, Paul George, Chris Paul and DeMarcus Cousins. With Howard leaving Charlotte, he looks set to play for his fourth team in as many years.
After morphing into the face of the Orlando Magic franchise (leading them to the 2009 NBA Finals), Howard wore out his welcome and was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers. But Howard struggled to play alongside Kobe Bryant, and he would later go on to sign with the Houston Rockets.
Following three years in Houston, Howard signed a three-year deal worth $70 million with the Atlanta Hawks. Howard posted his worst scoring totals since his rookie year, and he wound up being shipped to the Charlotte Hornets after the 2016-17 season.
Howard bounced back nicely with the Hornets this past season, averaging 16.6 points and 12.5 rebounds per game. Though he's probably well past his playing prime, D12 remains one of the NBA's top big men, and there will undoubtedly be a big market for his services this offseason.
Howard will likely have to sign a short-term contract and could try to reset his value for free agency in 2019. But at this point of his career, it's safe to say that he won't be signing such lucrative contracts that Houston and Atlanta handed out to him before.