NBA Trade Rumors 2013: Dwight Howard Likely Not To Re-Sign With the Los Angeles Lakers; Will D12 Form His "Big 3" With Houston Rockets' Jeremy Lin and James Harden?

Dwight Howard is not likely to return to the Los Angeles Lakers, according to ESPN, willing to walk away from the extra $30 million the franchise can pay him.

The Lakers can offer Howard a five-year, $18 million deal while other teams can pay him up to $88 million over four years. But money does not seem to be the driving issue for the All-Star center. Above not being fond of playing with guard Kobe Bryant - unhappy playing "Robin" to Bryant's "Batman", Howard feels that head coach Mike D'Antoni's system of offense is not compatible with his skill-sets.

Howard plans to meet with the Dallas Mavericks, Houston Rockets, and Atlanta Hawks once teams are allowed to contact free agents on July 1^st. While at first glance, it may seem like the Hawks are the front-runners considering Howard was born in Atlanta, Howard is fascinated with the idea of playing in Texas.

With former National Basketball Association (NBA) Most Valuable Player award winner Dirk Nowitzki in the late stages of his career, Howard is intrigued with being "the face" of the Dallas Mavericks, with owner Mark Cuban building around the center. Howard believes that, with the salary cap room the Mavericks have saved up, Dallas will be a major player in the highly-touted 2014 free agency market with salary cap flexibility to sign another star on the team.

"I'd love to play with a guy who can just get the ball in the post and spread the offense around the floor," Nowitzki told the Dallas Morning News.  "On defense a guy who can protect the rim like that is a luxury so we'd love to have him but so would the other teams with cap room. We'll wait and see what happens."

Dallas does have a major hurdle to clear, needing to trade Shawn Marion's expiring $9 million contract to create cap room to be able to sign Howard.

Houston is also high on Howard's list, with pieces in place - James Harden, Jeremy Lin, Chandler Parsons, Omer Asik - that could convince the center to sign with the team. Houston finished eighth in the Western Conference, getting eliminated by Oklahoma City Thunder in the first round of the playoffs after six games. Harden and Parsons have both reached out to Howard, pitching him on the franchise.

"I'm good friends with Dwight and we talk. When he's healthy and when he's playing, he's the best center in the NBA," said Parsons during his appearance on CBS Sports' ROME, early in June. "I remind him how good we could be together and how it would be fun to play with him and what he could do with our nucleus."

While Howard has expressed in the past that he would love to play for Rockets' coach and NBA Hall of Famer Kevin McHale, Houston would have to change their offensive philosophy if they hope to sign Howard. Howard was not happy playing D'Antoni's uptempo style of offense and has made it clear he wants to play in system more compatible with his talents.