Rockets report: 'Great memories' greet Howard in Orlando

ORLANDO, Fla. - Dwight Howard sat out the game in his return to Orlando in the second half of a back-to-back, but he said he still has warm memories of his time with the Magic, despite the often awkward split that saw him eventually traded to the Los Angeles Lakers.

Though Howard has been gone for just two seasons, there are no coaches or players left from the center's last Magic team.

"I grew up in Orlando," Howard said. "We had a lot of great memories, no matter how it ended. I enjoyed my time here. I'm just happy with my time here. I see the progress with this team and where they're trying to go."

Though he sat out Wednesday night's 90-89 victory, Howard said he is happy with his progress physically.

Asked if he has returned to where he had been before his back problem began in 2012, Howard said: "I'm getting there. It's a process. Some days I feel really good. There are days where I still feel bad, but all that is changing.

"A lot of the things I've been doing and we did during the summer," Howard said. "Our trainer has done an excellent job here of preparing me every day for the game. Having the bigs that we have has really helped me out, because they're not super tall, so they really get to dig in on my back when I'm making those moves, which is good for me and something we worked on all summer."

Ariza enjoystitle flashback

Trevor Ariza has changed teams four times since 2009. The Magic have overhauled their team and moved down the street to a new arena. Even the team hotel is different. But with every visit to Orlando, Ariza thinks of the time he departed the city with an NBA championship, the Los Angeles Lakers having completed their run to the title in Amway Arena.

"Absolutely, I definitely have happy memories from that time here," Ariza said. "Everything is pretty much different. The coaching staff isn't here. The building is different. If we were at the Amway Arena, then it would be different. But I did think about it since we've been here."

A little help?Board says no

The NBA Board of Governors voted down a proposal that would have brought some reform to the draft lottery system, a potential blow to the Rockets' hopes to improve the New Orleans Pelicans draft pick they own.

In the proposal, teams in the lottery could move up without necessarily moving into the top three (where the pick from the Pelicans is protected). If the changes had gone through, the Rockets had a chance for the pick to improve.

With the Pelicans' pick expected to be toward the final lottery spots - if in the lottery at all - the Rockets would not have a chance for the pick to move up, because in the current system, teams can move only into the top three, where New Orleans would retain the pick.

Jonathan Feigen