Houston Rockets Trade Rumors: Dwight Howard Discusses Rumors; KJ McDaniels Is Back In The D-League

By Miguel Vasquez, Christian Post Contributor Sunday, February 07, 2016

Houston Rockets big man Dwight Howard finally spoke up about the recurring rumors which talk about his being released from his current team.

Since late 2015, the 30-year-old professional basketball player has been involved in various rumors, the latest one claiming that he was headed for Boston to play for the Celtics.

But in a report by Eddie Scarito for HoopRumors.com, Howard addressed the said news, where he stated that "he is a Rocket" and "that's the only thing that matters."

"People are always going to have rumors and say certain things. It doesn't matter. It's just a distraction," Howard said, according to the report. "Nobody thinks about that stuff."

"I know my mind is on trying to get better every day," he continued. "I feel like I was in a good stretch and got hurt. I'm going to try to get back."

Howard went on to add that he avoids thinking far ahead into the future because he believes that would signify he is not really in it, noting that it would not be advisable to have those certain thoughts.

For the current season alone, Howard has played in 42 games and is averaging 14.2 points, 11.9 rebounds, 1.5 assists, 1.5 blocks, and 1.1 steals, through 32.1 minutes of playing time per game.

Meanwhile, small forward/shooting guard K.J. McDaniels has been relegated back to the NBA Developmental League (D-League). According to a tweet by the Houston Chronicle's Jonathan Feigen, the 22-year-old professional basketball player has been sent back to the Rio Grande Valley Vipers.

McDaniels was selected in the second round (32nd overall pick) by the Philadelphia 76ers in the 2014 NBA Draft. He was then traded to the Houston Rockets in February 2015, in exchange for 24-year-old guard Isaiah Canaan and a 2015 second-round draft pick.

Before he was released, McDaniels played a total of 16 games with the Rockets, where he was averaging 1.5 points, 0.8 rebounds, 0.1 assists, 0.3 blocks, and 0.2 steals, through 3.9 minutes of playing time per game.