NBA Trade Rumors 2013: Rockets Clearing Cap Space To Offer Dwight Howard a Max Contract

The Houston Rockets appears to be the front-runners in the Dwight Howard sweepstakes and they are already making the necessary steps to make sure that everything will be loaded for a possible deal with the free-agent center.

Adrian Wojnarowski of Yahoo Sports first reported that the Rockets agreed to trade Thomas Robinson to the Portland Trail Blazer. This was viewed by experts as the final move of the Rockets in creating the necessary cap space for Howard.

Under the terms of the deal revealed by Wojnarowski, Robinson will be Portland-bound in exchange for two future second-round picks along with the rights to international players Kostas Papanikolau and Marko Todorovic. The deal is expected to be confirmed on July 10 after the league's moratorium on free-agency signings.

Before shipping Robinson to the Trail Blazers, the Rockets also waived veteran forward Carlos Delfino and point guard Aaron Brooks earlier on Sunday. This series of moves gave the Rockets $7-million more cap space over the next two seasons before their scheduled meeting with Howard.

The Rockets are scheduled to meet with Howard and his agent this Sunday night wherein the Rockets are expected to offer a four-year, $88 million contract to the three-time Defensive Player of the Year.

The Rockets appear confident that they will be successful in nabbing Howard from the Los Angeles Lakers as reports suggest that the team is already making contingency plans to build a team centered on Howard and superstar guard James Harden.

Ken Berger of CBS Sports reported that the Rockets made Jeremy Lin and Omer Asik available in possible trades with one GM saying: "They already have him (Howard), if you talk to them".

Aside from the Rockets, Howard is also scheduled to meet with representatives of the Atlanta Hawks and Golden State Warriors on Monday, while the Dallas Mavericks, led by team owner Mark Cuban and Dirk Nowitzki, will visit Howard on Tuesday.

Previous reports suggested that Howard will unlikely return to the Los Angeles Lakers due to the offensive system of coach Mike D'Antoni, but the Lakers will make their last ditch effort on Tuesday to convince Howard to stay in LA.