WHERE ARE THEY NOW? The players from the Dwight Howard trade that rocked the NBA and sent the Lakers and Magic into tailspins

Dwight Howard’s Lakers tenure didn’t go as planned.

Kevork Djansezian/Getty Images

The Los Angeles Lakers’ trade for Dwight Howard was a four-team trade and one of the biggest blockbuster deals in NBA history.
The trade didn’t help any franchise involved, as Howard’s one-year stint in Los Angeles didn’t work out, and the rebuild set the Orlando Magic back several seasons.
The deal included 12 players and five picks — here’s where everyone involved is today.
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The Dwight Howard trade to the Los Angeles Lakers was one of the biggest blockbusters in NBA history and, ultimately, a deal that didn’t seem to benefit anyone.

Howard was one of the NBA’s best players when the Magic shipped him to the Lakers in 2012 in a four-team trade that included the Philadelphia 76ers and Denver Nuggets.

Howard’s one-year stint on the Lakers was a disaster, as he battled injury and chemistry issues on the star-studded squad. Meanwhile, the Magic’s attempt at a rebuild after losing their star came well short. The Magic broke a six-year playoff drought in 2019 and have made the postseason the last two years, but have a long way to go to championship contention.

The 76ers took a swing in the trade by landing Andrew Bynum and missed, while the Nuggets may have actually gotten the best end of the deal by landing just one player — Andre Iguodala.

Eight years later, here’s where all of the players and the draft picks involved in the trade ended up.

The trade centered on Dwight Howard, who was one of the NBA’s best players at the time. His time in LA was a bust, however, as he battled injuries and chemistry issues. He left for the Houston Rockets in the summer of 2013.

Howard hopped around the NBA after his season with the Lakers, playing for four teams over six years. After nearly falling out of the NBA, he is back with the Lakers this season.

dwight howard 2020 — Mark J. Terrill/AP Images

The Lakers also received Chris Duhon from the Magic.

Duhon’s lone season with the Lakers was his last in the NBA. He is now an assistant coach on the Illinois State basketball team.

Earl Clark, a fourth-year forward, also joined the Lakers in the trade.

Clark showed some promise in his NBA career but struggled with consistency. He last played in the NBA in 2015 and now plays overseas.

earl clark montenegro — via YouTube/Budućnost VOLI

The Magic got a haul in return, receiving players from the Lakers, 76ers, and Nuggets. The 76ers sent second-year center Nikola Vucevic to the Magic.

Vucevic is still with the Magic. He has averaged 16 points and 10 rebounds for his career and was an All-Star in 2018-19.

The Magic received Arron Afflalo from the Nuggets.

arron afflalo magic 2012 — Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP

Afflalo bounced around the league after the trade, playing for the Nuggets (again), Blazers, Knicks, Kings, and Magic (again). He last played in the NBA in 2018. He is now reportedly part of a group trying to purchase the Minnesota Timberwolves

Al Harrington, a scoring forward from the Nuggets, also landed with the Magic in the trade.

Harrington played two more seasons, finishing his NBA career with the Wizards in 2014. He has since played in the Big 3 and is an advocate for legal marijuana and an investor in marijuana companies.

al harrington big 3 — Claus Andersen/BIG3/Getty Images

Source: GQ

The 76ers sent the Magic rookie forward Moe Harkless, who hadn’t yet played an NBA game.

moe harkless magic — Phelan M. Ebenhack/AP

Harkless has since played for the Blazers and Clippers and is currently on the Knicks. He has career averages of 7.2 points and 3.7 rebounds per game.

The Lakers traded Josh McRoberts to the Magic.

McRoberts last spent a brief stint with the Mavericks in the 2017-18 season.

josh mcroberts 2018 — David Zalubowski/AP

Christian Eyenga was traded from the Lakers to the Magic.

Eyenga never played in the regular season for the Magic and hasn’t played in the NBA since. He now plays overseas.

christian eyenga 2018 — B Hojas/COOLMedia/NurPhoto/Getty Images

The Magic got several draft picks back in the trade, too. A 2013 second-round draft pick from the Nuggets became Romero Osby.

Osby never played in the NBA. He played overseas until 2015 and now appears to be involved in real estate.

romero osby twitter — via Twitter/Romero Osby

Source: Twitter

The Nuggets also traded the Magic a 2014 first-round pick. The Magic later sent it to the 76ers in a trade for Elfrid Payton. That pick eventually became Croatian forward Dario Saric.

Saric is now on the Phoenix Suns. He averaged 10 points and 6 rebounds per game in 2019-20.

The Magic received a 2017 first-round pick from the 76ers. That pick was sent back to the Sixers in the Elfrid Payton trade, then later sent to the Kings. The Kings used it to draft De’Aaron Fox.

Fox is still with the Kings and looks like one of the NBA’s bright, young stars.

The Lakers sent a protected draft pick to the Magic that later turned into two second-round picks. The Magic used the first pick to draft Wesley Iwundu in 2017.

Iwundu has played three years with the Magic, averaging 5 points and 2 rebounds per game.

The Magic sent the second of those second-round picks to the Raptors, who then traded it to the Nets in another deal. The Nets used it to draft Rodions Kurucs in 2018.

Kurucs has played two years with the Nets, averaging 6 points and 3 rebounds per game.

rodions lkurucs — Kathy Willens/AP Images

The 76ers got a big piece in the trade — Lakers All-Star center Andrew Bynum.

Bynum’s career petered out after the trade as he played just 26 total games after the deal, none with the Sixers. He hasn’t played since 2014. He attempted a comeback in 2018, but was unsuccessful.

andrew bynum 2018 — via Twitter/Chris Johnson

The 76ers received veteran guard Jason Richardson from the Magic in the deal.

Richardson played two years with the Sixers and retired in 2015 with career averages of 17 points and 5 rebounds per game. He now plays in the Big 3.

jason richardson big 3 — David Becker/Getty Images

The Nuggets received Andre Iguodala from the 76ers.

andre iguodala nuggets — David Zalubowski/AP

In the end, the Nuggets may have gotten best player in the entire deal. Iguodala played one season with the Nuggets before joining the Warriors where he became a big part of their three championships and five Finals appearances. He now plays on the Heat.