NBA trade rumors: Pelicans had exploratory talks with Hawks about Dwight Howard

A couple of weeks ago, it was reported that the Atlanta Hawks were allegedly looking to blow up their roster by trading away All-Star forward Paul Millsap. Sharpshooter Kyle Korver and defensive specialist Thabo Sefolosha were also on the trading block at the time. Korver was eventually traded to the Cleveland Cavaliers, but Millsap and Sefolosha stayed on with the team.

Right now, the Hawks are committed to winning and they believe they can compete in the Eastern Conference. But things did look shaky a few weeks ago. Now, reports are saying that another key player was actually in the market as well during that time.

ESPN's Zach Lowe has reported that the Hawks actually thought about trading center Dwight Howard to the New Orleans Pelicans, however, nothing materialized before the Hawks pulled their players out of the trade market.

"In the days that followed, Atlanta and New Orleans had exploratory talks about possible Howard trades before the Hawks pulled everyone off the market, according to several league sources. It is unclear how interested New Orleans was, and there was not unanimous support within the team for acquiring Howard," Lowe said in his piece about the Pelicans and their need to get things together.

A pairing between Howard and Anthony Davis would have been interesting. It would be a block party. He's definitely an upgrade over Omer Asik. But based on Lowe's report, it seems the Pelicans weren't that interested in acquiring Howard anyway.

Howard's best days are behind him and he's now a shell of the player that he used to be. However, he is still one of the best rebounders in the league and he's also a good shot blocker.

The Pelicans are fighting for a playoff spot right now in the Western Conference, and they need all the help they can get. But the team probably doesn't think Howard will make much of a difference, so he's going to stay with the Hawks for now.