Chicago Doesn't Need Howard's Drama

As I sit here and watch the Bench Mob take over the Miami Heat in the Madhouse on Madison, I can’t help but discard the thought that the Bulls need Dwight Howard. Let’s clear this up right now, though. I said they don’t NEED D12, not that they couldn’t USE him. There’s a difference. With that being said, I hope the Bulls don’t try to deal for the league’s best big man.

First off, one of the many reasons the Bulls should not try to sign Dwight Howard is because of who they would have to give up. Lots of combinations have floated around and nearly all of them have included either Joakim Noah or Carlos Boozer. You can’t afford to give up Joakim. I don’t care that people STILL think he’s a poor draft pick. You try and find me a big man who plays harder, is more dedicated, and brings more energy to a game than Joakim Noah and I’ll stop writing blogs. He’ll never have the stats that Dwight does, but I promise you that he will work harder and give more to the team than Dwight ever could.

That brings us to Carlos Boozer. He has, undoubtedly, underperformed. And yes I realize that you can’t keep waiting for him to string together six or seven solid games. But the fact of the matter is, he’s a team guy, he’ll do what’s necessary to win, and be happy doing it. To be blunt, Dwight Howard is selfish and egotistical. He said he doesn’t want to go to Chicago because he doesn’t want to play second banana to Derrick Rose. Are you kidding me? You have the chance to play with a team that’s now a perennial contender and the reigning MVP and you’re not going to take it because you want the team to be yours??? Give me a break. That ticks me off more than anything. And then, to go along with that, there are rumors that Dwight Howard doesn’t want to be in the same city as Rose because they both have huge Adidas contracts. Why does it ALWAYS have to be about the money? When will the love finally trump a contract? Carlos Boozer won’t care about his money, he won’t care about having to deal with Rose’s worldwide fame, and he’ll do what needs to be done. Is he inconsistent? Absolutely. But the bottom line is, the Bulls are 35-9 and Boozer hasn’t done too much damage. Keep him.

Going off of how selfish Dwight Howard can be, brings us to the locker room atmosphere. It’s always a behind-the-scenes aspect of the NBA, but there’s no doubt it’s key. Even great teams like the Oklahoma City Thunder have struggled with Kevin Durant and Russell Westbrook. Team chemistry is everything in the NBA because coaches have to find a balance for all the egos. Tom Thibedeau has done exactly that. The Bulls have no egos, the role players understand their jobs and the scorers like Luol Deng and Derrick Rose understand theirs. The Bulls have the best team chemistry in the league and adding a self-centered guy like Dwight Howard could be cancerous.

Again, I’m not saying that Dwight Howard wouldn’t help. Obviously he would be a HUGE part of the Bulls lineup and he would provide a second scorer that the Bulls so desperately need. However, it’s not always about talent because, as the saying goes, hard work beats talent when talent doesn’t work hard. Leave Dwight to rot in his own pity in Orlando and keep the Bulls the way they are. Give them one more year to mature and just watch and see what happens. Chicago doesn’t need Dwight Howard, Dwight Howard needs Chicago.