Posted by Sabrina B. @gametimegirl
Up-and-coming NBA star John Wall, native son LaMarcus Aldridge and world champion Jason Terry will descend on Dallas next month as the expected headliners for an exhibition game hosted by former Mavericks forward Josh Howard.
Howard is following the lead of several other NBA players who have organized exhibition games in various cities while the NBA lockout drags on. Several days of long meetings in New York last week ended without a resolution and with no further meetings set.
Among the other NBA players scheduled to play in Howard’s event Nov. 12 are Mavericks forwardCorey Brewer, former Mavs DeSagana Diop andMarquis Daniels, Minnesota’s Anthony Randolph and Toronto’s Reggie Evans.
When the game is played, the 2010-11 champion Mavs should have been six games into defending their title.
Thunder forward Kevin Durant organized a star-studded exhibition for Sunday night in Oklahoma City. Superstars Chris Paul, Carmelo Anthony and LeBron James — who held a similar event in Miami earlier this month with Heat teammates Dwyane Wade and Chris Bosh — were among the players committed to Durant’s event.
Dallas traded Howard to the Washington Wizards at the 2010 trade deadline for Caron Butler,Brendan Haywood and DeShawn Stevenson. Howard was drafted by the Mavs with the 29th pick in the first round and spent his first 6½ seasons with the franchise.
Howard is set to become a free agent whenever the lockout is lifted. He tore the ACL in his left knee soon after joining the Wizards, and last season he continually dealt with issues related to the knee and was limited to just 18 games.
Despite a relationship with the Mavericks franchise and fans that eroded over time, Howard has kept close ties with Dallas and continues to organize events there for his foundation.
November’s event will be held at the P.C. Cobb Athletic Complex at Dallas’ Fair Park, which seats about 2,200 and was the site of Howard’s charity game in June.
The limited tickets can be purchased through the Josh Howard Foundation (http://www.joshhowardfoundation.com) or by calling 202-600-0623.
WRITTEN BY Jeff Caplan covers the Mavericks for ESPNDallas.com & FULL STORY HERE
Follow Jeff Caplan on Twitter:Â @espn_caplan
