Free Agent Josh Howard . . . uh . . . somehow on the radar for the San Antonio Spurs *and* Utah Jazz . . . in 2012-13?

I don't think Free Agent Josh Howard was a good fit for what we were trying to do last season. I did not like the signing in the off-season. During the entire regular season, and especially in the playoffs, his PLAY on the court continued to validate my preseason opinion. And now, well, now he's somehow still in the mix for not just OUR team, but also the team that won 50 games in a 66 game schedule - the San Antonio Spurs. Now, before I go any further - I'm not some mystical insider. I'm just a fan. And a fan who was too busy to read every article, post, and tweet about the Utah Jazz this week. So, from my quick look online, this is a rumor.

And well . . .

"And everyone knows you can’t disprove a rumor."

- Jay Asher

Personally, I think rumors are great. But what I enjoy more than rumors are things called facts. Let's look at some facts, shall we?

• Josh Howard is 32 years old, and he looked like he was 52 years old in the playoffs
• He was an All-Star during the 2006-07 season, which was his fourth season in the NBA. He's played nine seasons though. So . . . it's been 5 years since he was an All-Star. Things change with time.
• Josh's game has gone in the toilet. Last season he shot worse than he did as a rookie at fg% and 3pt%. And his PER 36 minute results are inferior to his rookie season as well now.
  
• Josh shoots a heck of a lot, and is allergic to passing the ball. Last season he shot the ball 361 times in only 991 minutes of action. That means he shot the ball once every 2.7 minutes on the floor. Paul Millsap shot it once every 2.4 minutes on the floor, and he was our best player. Our best small forward, Gordon Hayward, shot the ball once every 3.4 minutes on the floor. Our top scorer, Al Jefferson, shot the ball once every 2.0 minutes.
  
• C.J. Miles, who played less MPG than Josh Howard, finished with a higher APG value: 1.23 > 1.16. Josh Howard's AST% was worse than Jeremy Evans. Seriously. It was slightly above DeMarre Carroll's as well.
• Josh Howard was a 32 year old veteran who was supposed to help us in the playoffs by being a veteran with playoff experience
• Josh Howard started in the first three games, and the Jazz were losing at the end of the 1st quarter in each game.
• Josh Howard Finished the playoffs with a -0.008 Win Shares per 48 mpg. He also shot 29.4 fg%, a 10.2 PER rating, and a grant total of 3 more assists than Jeremy Evans.
• He wasn't the only Jazz player to have a horrible playoffs; but he was the only "veteran All-Star wing" player who did. He did play no worse than a couple of 20 year olds who had never been to the playoffs before. So there's that. He's not WORSE than absolute novices.
  
• Facts aside, I think Josh Howard stunk it up. 82games.com agrees with me. So does Hoopsdata, Basketball-Reference, Synergy, and various other websites.

So how is he rumored to be WANTED by other teams still? That's something I can't quantify. But if we're judging Josh Howard by the QUALITY of who he is as a player right now, I'd rather bring along that dude from our summer league team with the crazy hair instead. At least he has upside and isn't going to cost more than Alec Burks. Oh, you didn't know? The huge "money saving Josh Howard " 's contract last season was greater than the rookie contract for a lottery pick.

Josh Howard? You're not on the Jazz now. I don't have to say nice things about you. And you're not on the Jazz now. I'm not going to hold back on exposing your garbage basketball ability.

Let's finish with another quote.

"I offer my opponents a bargain: if they will stop telling lies about us, I will stop telling the truth about them"

― Adlai Stevenson