NBA Trade Rumors 2013: Dwight Howard Cleared To Play After Shoulder Injury Scare; Kobe Confronts Howard During Lakers Meeting

As the circus of drama continues for the Los Angeles Lakers, one has to wonder how much longer Dwight Howard will continue to be in Los Angeles.

It was a tumultuous Wednesday for the Lakers, marked by a team meeting that got confrontational, another shoulder injury to Howard that leaves him in question--again--and another loss that has the Lakers looking more like a team in disarray than the championship team that they were assembled to be.

Coach Mike D'Antoni reportedly held a meeting before their Wednesday game against the Memphis Grizzlies, which they lost 106-93, where he asked the players to air their grievances.

Kobe Bryant reportedly asked Dwight Howard if he had a problem playing with him as a teammate, to which sources told the L.A. Times that the big man was "despondent" over and did not directly answer the question, ESPN reported.

"Whatever was said that (Bryant) said is not true," Howard said. "He never asked me if I liked playing with him. I will say that. He never asked me."

When Howard was asked if he was bothered by playing with Bryant, he answered, "No, I'm not."

"It's something that we all got to learn. We got to learn how to play together," he added.

When Bryant was asked if he "felt comfortable" with what he said during the team meeting, his reply was a simple "Yup."

Howard's shoulder injury not as serious as expected

Following the meeting, the Lakers were dealt another setback in the form of Howard re-aggravating his right shoulder injury in the Wednesday loss against Memphis.

With the All-Star center looking out of sorts in D'Antoni's system and rumors of Howard being unhappy in Los Angeles, trade rumors have been swirling around him as the Feb. 21 trade deadline approaches.

But with an injury to his shoulder and Howard's previously documented problems in Orlando and now L.A., that could pose a significant problem for teams looking to get the two-time Defensive Player of the Year.

However, Howard's shoulder issues don't appear to be as serious as originally anticipated. The Lakers found out Thursday that team doctors cleared Howard to play after finding no serious shoulder damage.

While the injury bullet has been avoided, Howard is still being cautious.

"I still feel it. It's still aggravated. It's something that I'm going to have to learn how to cope with. The biggest thing is just getting it stronger so it won't continue to bother me," he said.

Still, questions remain.

With the Lakers still not on the same page, the losing skid currently at four games-the Lakers going 2-8 in their last 10 games-and Howard's contract expiring at the end of the season, do the Lakers try to make it work with Howard wearing purple-and-gold?

Or do they pull the plug on the "Dwight Howard Experiment" and trade him for new pieces?

The Lakers are the only ones who know for sure, leaving everyone else to wait until Feb. 21 to see what their final decision will be.