You listen to Dwight Howard and it is easy to walk away confused. In one breath he says the Orlando Magic can win the NBA title. In the next, he wants out of Orlando or wouldn't mind being traded. Very confusing. Why, if he can get more  money in Orlando (and he thinks they can win a title), does he seem to want out so bad? Or does he just like to be the center of attention?

Any way you cut it, Howard has been given permission for his agent to seek a deal with a few clubs like the Lakers, Mavs, and NJ Nets. Well, seems the Knicks want in as well- don't they always?

Rumors floating out of several places have the Knicks offering either Tyson Chandler and Amare Stoudemire to the Magic for the great center or Chandler and Carmelo Anthony for Howard!

Any team that can strike a deal with Orlando, if they can before the March 15th deadline, will have to agree to a new contract with the affable Howard.

Let's analyze both rumors concerning the Knicks. Howard easily makes up for the loss of Chandler and adds more scoring punch. Chandler is doing a nice job for NY but if you can get Howard... well, no brainer, really. So who else goes if this is real? If you deal Melo, that gives more shots to a slew of talented offensive players- namely Amare, Jeremy Lin, JR Smith, Steve Novack and a few others. Between Melo and Amare, while neither is a great defensive player, Amare is probably a better guy on the glass and challenging a few shots.

However what is up with Stoudemire? He really lacks that aggression he showed last year and with the Suns for the most part. Injuries? Lingering sadness with the death of his brother? Whatever it is, he just doesn't look like the Amare the Knicks signed as a free agent...Is it that he and Melo just don't mix well? Maybe a combination of all three.

With Mike D'Antoni as coach, the Knicks will never be confused with the Pat Reilly Knicks, but you can't win a title if you can't make stops. In that regard an Amare-Howard front line is better suited. Add in Josh Harrelson and that's not a bad front line on the defensive end. However Carmelo is one of the top three finishers in the NBA and isn't afraid to take and make the big shots. The numbers show he is clutch and unafraid. I believe only Kobe shoots it better in what is defined as crunch time.

If I was the Knicks, would I explore this? Absolutely! Getting perhaps the premiere center in the NBA- who, by the way, is still very young and would take NY by storm- has to be investigated. If I had to choose which of the other big fellas to give up in the deal, I would be more likely to want to deal Amare than Melo because of injury history and the ability to make the big shot like Melo does.

The last question is this: can any of the other teams Howard is looking at offer a better package? Hard to think anyone could or would offer two better and ready-to help-now players than what the Knicks seem to be offering- if the rumors are true!

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