Having been a fantasy owner of Josh Howard for the latter end of the fantasy season, I can say that he was a tale of different players this year--early on he was extremely hot and looking like the all star he was, looking extremely potent offensively, but towards the tail end he started bricking everything and extremely pathetic shooting nights became commonplace for him. I have a couple of crazy far off theories, such as the fact that I think he needs Devin Harris in order to truly thrive, because after Harris got traded he really went into a tailspin; another is that he's a one-on-one player to the nth degree--quite individual minded offensively, so when Kidd came in that was mutual destruction--Kidd couldn't adapt to the 1-on-1 play the Mavs already had instituted, and Josh Howard didn't know how to deal with Kidd's ball dominance because he also needed the ball. All that being said, I think Josh Howard's going to be traded this offseason, and it's quite sad, frankly; he was a huge surprise and looking next to untouchable his rookie year, then established himself into an all-star and then throws up bricks and bombs that ultimately have assured the Mavs' destruction. Highs and lows. Although his value is low, Howard can still get the Mavs a position of need based on his past accolades and offensive talent alone, even if he's awfully one or one-and-a-half dimensional at times with merely just scoring and rebounding. But the talent is there.
As for Artest, I don't I'd do the trade, actually. For starters, it's not like we need another SF, and as I said before, Howard is a ball-dominant one-on-one player at his best, and he's far from being an all-around player. If playing within a team/passing oriented system, I honestly don't think he'll thrive--his jumper is extremely streaky, and he needs to have a feel for the ball to get his confidence in his shot. Freak athleticism? It's not "freak", but more like power athleticism. He's not going to overwhelm anyone, although he certainly has enough to slash effectively. All that being said, I'd prefer minutes go to Garcia and Martin and perhaps Salmons if he stays. Howard's drug usage is the final straw that makes me say no on any trade for him.