If it’s a ring he seeks, Dwight Howard should go to Dallas

ORLANDO – Dwight Howard says he wants to win a championship. If that’s really the case, Oklahoma City would be happy to sign him.

That’s not really the case, of course. The Thunder could offer only a peanut contract, and Howard isn’t about to give up about $75 million for an NBA title or two.

You can’t hold the “I want to win a championship” edict over Howard’s head with Oklahoma City. You can raise it with a team 189 miles south.

Dallas could offer Howard what he supposedly values most. It's not bright lights or a big city, but a big old championship ring.

He probably knows that, though not even his mother apparently knows for sure what Howard’s thinking.

She told TNT during Sunday night’s game that she’d like her son to stay in Orlando. That came a few minutes after Howard was spotted yukking it up next to Rich DeVos.

The Magic owner said if he were a betting man, he’d wager Howard will stay put. For your own good, Mr. DeVos, stay away from Vegas.

There’s a better chance Howard will be playing for Manchester United next year than the Magic. Come to think of it, wasn’t that one of the rumors over All-Star Weekend?

Among the various off-the-record reports, the Lakers are trying to package a Pau Gasol-Andrew Bynum deal with Toronto throwing in Jose Calderon.

The Knicks have renewed interest in Howard, and could deal Amare Stoudemire or Carmelo Anthony. The Nets are confident they’ll get Howard because they apparently have incriminating photos of him wearing Marv Albert’s old underwear.

The Clippers are now on Howard’s secret wish list. The Magic are going after Steve Nash, hoping the thought of an aging point guard will entice Howard into signing a long-term deal.

I’m undoubtedly missing a few rumors, but just assume all parties involved shot them down. The only definite is, now that All-Star Weekend is over, Dwight Hunting season has really begun.

He made it official in his pregame speech to the Amway Arena crowd. Howard called Orlando “my city, my home.” At least until the March 15 trade deadline.

Just for simplicity’s sake, let’s take Howard at his word on where he’s willing to go. The Magic could trade him to Sacramento, of course. But no team will give up much unless it knows Howard will sign a long-term deal after the season.

That presumably eliminates everyone except the Lakers, Nets and Mavericks. The Nets are desperate for Dwight. It’s the big city Howard longs for, though their new arena will be decidedly off-Broadway in Brooklyn.

The only other lure is Deron Williams, who is also a free agent at season’s end. Howard and Williams make a winning foundation, but a championship foundation?

Winning a title would require a lot of confidence in Nets management. I’m not sure what Howard would base that confidence on, other than owner Mikhail Prokhorov’s track record as a mining magnate in Russia.

That’s still better than the Lakers. The standard NBA narrative for years has been that L.A. somehow finds a way to get big deals done. But that’s the Lakers under Jerry Buss.

His son Jim is running things now. Phil Jackson and most of the front-office brainpower are gone. Kobe Bryant’s days of being Kobe Bryant are dwindling.

It’s still L.A., but it’s not the same Lakers. If Howard wants a title, he should want a proven owner and coach (Mike Brown?). He should want a nucleus of established talent.

In short, he should want Dallas.

Dirk Nowitzki has two or three top-notch years left. Rick Carlisle can X and O with any coach. Then there’s Mark Cuban.

For all his annoying theatrics, the guy has built a great organization. Howard wanted more input with the Magic, and Cuban also will let him at least feel he’s in on things.

The sweetener is that Williams is from Dallas. He’d like to go back there if this Brooklyn thing doesn’t work out.

The hitch?

Dallas has cleared a lot of salary space, but probably won’t have enough to offer both Howard and Williams max contracts. Somebody might have to get by on about $15 million a year.

And it’s Dallas, a big city with big boots and belt buckles. But it’s not New York or L.A., where Howard can pursue everything a 26-year-old zillionaire could dream of.

That’s fine, but this 26-year-old says his big goal in life is to win a championship while he’s still young. Howard holds all the cards to make that happen.

If he doesn’t end up in Dallas, it was all a bluff.