Bryant 'unfollows' Howard on Twitter, posts photo with Gasol

MANILA, Philippines – Shortly after Dwight Howard tweeted that he would join the Houston Rockets, Los Angeles Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant un-followed the All-Star center on Twitter and posted a photo of him and Pau Gasol on Instagram.

The picture came with the hashtags “#vamos #juntos #lakercorazon #vino” which meant “We go united, Laker heart and his nickname “Vino” (wine in English).

The move was seen as Bryant’s way of showing he’s moving on without Howard and made his intentions clear to the Lakers management that he wants Gasol to stay.

Gasol has survived the past two seasons with his name always being mentioned in trade rumors.  But with Howard turning his back on the Lakers after a disappointing season playing uncomfortable in Mike D’ Antoni system, it is now imperative for the Lakers to keep Gasol, who has still one year left in his contract.

The Los Angeles Times reported that the Lakers will save significantly in luxury tax without Howard but will be left with only about $3.2 million to spend on free agency to fill that big gaping hole in the middle.

The only positive that came out of the whole Dwight Howard mess in L.A. is that the Lakers could become a major player in next summer’s free agency with the potential to add two players with maximum contracts granted that Bryant returns for a discounted rate from the $30.5 million he stands to receive this season.