What next in Syria? Death toll continues to rise

1. CNN International ‏@cnni

   Syria's opposition to boycott conference http://dlvr.it/301snL 

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   What next in Syria? Death toll continues to rise

   The Syrian National Coalition says it is suspending participation in the Friends of Syria conference "in protest of the shameful international position."

   CNN International @cnni · Follow
2. 3 hrs81Marc Lynch ‏@abuaardvark

   FP: Here's your plan B -- arming rebels isn't the only (or best) way to help Syria. New post/report http://atfp.co/W9KDq0 

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Silver Screen & Roll ‏@LakersBlog_SSR

The Lakers have fielded calls on Howard, and rival executives believe he could still be traded. http://sbn.to/Zes68U 

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USA TODAY Sports

The Lakers assured Dwight Howard they had no intention of trading him, but Alex Kennedy reports the Lakers are still fielding calls on their center.

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Despite assurances from the Los Angeles Lakers to Dwight Howard that they would not trade him, rival executives still believe he could be traded by the Lakers before the trade deadline passes, reports Alex Kennedy of HoopsWorld

Even though Los Angeles Lakers general manager Mitch Kupchak has assured Howard that he won’t be traded before the Feb. 21 deadline, rival executives believe the 27-year-old may still be moved. The Lakers have fielded calls for Howard and are keeping their options open. Multiple league sources believe that Kupchak is assuring Howard that he won’t traded just in case the team decides not to pull the trigger on a deal.

Mitch Kupchak shot down rumors that he had exploratory negotiations with the Boston Celtics, and since then there haven't been any significant teams linked to Dwight. However,Ken Berger has reported that several teams in the league believe that the Atlanta Hawkscould make a deadline push to land Howard. Kennedy also elaborated on why his sources believe the Lakers may consider trading Howard before the deadline passes.

While the Lakers have shot down some rumors involving Howard – such as the rumored deal for Rajon Rondo of the Boston Celtics – nobody around the league would be surprised if a Howard trade gets completed before 3 p.m. ET on Thursday. The Lakers understand that Howard is unhappy in Los Angeles – he has butted heads with Kobe Bryant, grown tired of Mike D’Antoni and felt that the organization hasn’t supported him at times – which is why a Howard deal can’t be ruled out. Sources say that Howard hasn’t asked for a trade and doesn’t plan to do so, but he wouldn’t be opposed to a deal.

Plenty of smoke right now, but it's hard to tell if there's any fire to it. We'll know soon enough.

- Drew

- Follow this author on Twitter @DrewGarrisonSBN