Should Dwight Stay With the Lakers?

Dwight's Decision

Haz Bey

We are six weeks away from Dwight Howard testing the free agency market and making some huge headlines, but the number one question to Lakernation is... Should Dwight stay with the Lakers?  Well first you have to lay out the positives and the negatives into bringing Dwight Howard back in the fold.



The Positives of Dwight Resigning with the Lakers...
The Lakers will have a face for the franchise to transition from the Kobe Bryant Era.

Dwight's ailing back will be be healthier and stronger than it was this past season.

Dwight can get 20 and 10 every night as long as Lakers keep him involved offensively.

All 16 Laker Championships included All-Star quality centers roaming the paint.

2014 off season only Dwight and Steve Nash are going to be on the books and  the Lakers can rebuild the roster with young, athletic players to complement Dwight's skill-set.

Phil Jackson would love to coach Dwight in the Triangle, if of course the Lakers decided to bring Mr. Jackson back, say 2014 off season.

Dwight can make $30 million more with the Lakers than with any other franchise and going through what he did with his surgically repaired back and nagging shoulder injury, another $30 million wouldn't be so bad.

The Negatives of Dwight Resigning with Lakers...
There is a chance that Dwight will never return that a dominant form that we are accustomed to seeing from his Orlando Magic days.

Dwight lacks mental toughness.

Dwight complains too much.

Dwight is a terrible free throw shooter.

Brooklyn is where Dwight's heart truly is, L.A. was never his first choice.

Dwight quit on the Lakers in Game 4 of the first round of the playoffs against the Spurs, by getting ejected at the start of the 2nd half when his team needed him the most with the season on the line.


Conclusion
I am sure that there are more positives and negatives that factor in to why or why not the Lakers should bring back Dwight, but from what I believe the best thing for both the Lakers and Dwight Howard is that Dwight has to want to be Laker.  He has to want to embrace the tradition of excellence that the franchise represents.  He has to have to courage to live up to the extremely high expectations.  If he has those kind of wants and desires, then the negatives that I laid out will not be a problem.  He can correct just about any negative about him.  Six weeks is a longtime to wait and see what happens, but either way if Dwight stays or leaves, their will be closure to this drama.