Dwight Howard Deserves More Credit Than He Gets
As easy as it is to hate on Dwight Howard, he is the best true center the league has seen in years.
In a league that’s heavily dependent on the ability to shoot, Dwight Howard has become an anomaly. But while this may be the case, you can’t deny how good D-12 was in his heyday.
Yes, he’s had his moments of selfishness. He was demanding in his final years with the Orlando Magic. The pressure he put on owners is comparable to the likes of LeBron James and Paul George. All of that may be true, but at the end of the day, he’s the apex of what you want out of a center. But before we get into all of that, let’s take a look back at Howard’s career as a whole.
In high school, Dwight Howard dominated his competition. In the Jordan Classic in 2004, he posted 18 points, 15 rebounds, and 6 blocks. Those numbers helped push Howard to the top of the draft board. Interestingly enough, that draft class was not very deep. However, you do see the likes of Andre Iguodala, Al Jefferson, and Emeka Okafor being selected in this draft. Looking back at this class, the fact that Howard went first overall shows how dominant he really was.
It should be noted that he did go ahead of Emeka Okafor. Both Howard and Okafor had great rookie years. Howard averaged 12.0 points, 10.0 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks, while Okafor averaged 15.1 points, 10.9 rebounds, and 1.7 blocks. Ultimately, Okafor would win the Rookie of the Year award. Howard would finish third in the vote behind Ben Gordon. Dwight Howard was slept on from the start. For an 18-year-old to put up numbers like that as a rookie is pretty impressive. But that’s neither here nor there.
The next season, Dwight Howard built upon a solid rookie campaign. His game continued to improve, and he ultimately averaged 15.8 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks. Howard’s first two seasons were completely different from the rest of his career. First, he was playing the four instead of the five. Orlando’s head coach at the time, Johnny Davis, preferred to have Howard play power forward in favor of playing Tony Battie at center. However, once Brian Hill took over for his second run in 2007, Howard was moved to the center position, where he would thrive for the rest of his career.
Oh, has he thrived.
Since 2007, Howard made eight consecutive All-Star games. He has won three consecutive NBA Defensive Player of the Year awards. On top of that, his defensive box plus/minus places fifth among active players. He’s truly done it all.
His Orlando days were fairly interesting. Once Stan Van Gundy landed a coaching job with the Magic, the makeup of the team started to change. They brought in shooters like Rashard Lewis to pair with the likes of Jameer Nelson, J.J. Redick, and Hedo Turkoglu. At the center of it all (pun intended) was Dwight Howard. Essentially, the team was D-12 and shooters. In a vacuum, this team seems like a fifth or sixth seed at best, right?
Well, I guess you can say they exceeded expectations.
Once again, everything goes back to Dwight Howard. Specifically, the success of the 2008–2009 team that made the NBA Finals. The Magic finished that season with a 59–23 record and landed the third seed in the Eastern Conference.
Orlando had been written off for the majority of that year. Teams like the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics received much more coverage. The Celtics had built a super team with the likes of Paul Pierce, Kevin Garnett, and Ray Allen. The Cavs had LeBron and company.
Now, the interesting thing about the 2008–2009 Orlando Magic is just how dominant Dwight Howard was. During those playoffs, Dwight averaged 20.3 points, 15.3 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks per game. In NBA history, only eight other players have averaged 20–15–2 in the playoffs. Howard is up there with the likes of Shaquille O’Neal, Hakeem Olajuwon, and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar as the only players to post such astronomical numbers.
You can’t take that away from him.
He took a team whose second best player was Rashard Lewis to the NBA Finals. On top of that, he did it against Hall of Fame caliber talent like LeBron James and Kevin Garnett. Unfortunately, the Magic couldn’t shock the world and lost to the Lakers in five games. Obviously, he could finish it off against the Los Angeles Lakers, but the fact still remains that the Magic exceeded expectations. The Lakers were on another level that season with the likes of Pau Gasol, a healthier Andrew Bynum, and Kobe Bryant. It was a matchup that showed the extreme amount of talent across the board that LA had that season.
Anyway, enough fluff. Let’s get into the trade and beyond.
Yeah, Dwight Howard started to get a little fed up in Orlando. After years of carrying the Magic, he requested a trade in 2011.
“Right now me and [GM Otis Smith] are gonna continue to try to make this team better,” he said. “And I’m gonna do my part on the court. That’s the reason I’m here. To get our team better and to make myself a better leader for this team.
This would all come to a head in the summer of 2012 when Dwight Howard would be traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in a four team trade involving numerous players and picks. I’m not going to give this deal a grade, but LA lost the trade, for sure. Howard had been dealing with back issues for the majority of the season. On top of that, he and Kobe never really got along. It was a lose-lose situation for both parties.
It’s not as if Howard had a bad year, though. He still posted 17.1 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game. There are a ton of factors that go into why the Lakers failed that year. Outside of Howard and Bryant, the team wasn’t that good. Steve Nash and Metta World Peace were on a downward slope in their careers. On top of that, the Lakers went through three head coaches that season. There’s was a lack of real chemistry and stability on all fronts. It’d be easy to say that Dwight Howard was the main culprit, but it’s not fair to him.
Finally, let’s look at Howard’s run in Houston.
If anyone received heat for a failed experiment, it was Dwight Howard’s season in Los Angeles. He got a reputation for being a crybaby behind the scenes. The loveable, fun, goofy ballplayer began to lose his fan base. Orlando and LA fans hated him, but what was next? Houston, we have liftoff.
Howard signed with the Rockets in 2013 after a failed run in Los Angeles. He went there as a means of joining forces with James Harden. The plan made sense, as there was no way Howard would want to come back to LA, especially after the losing season the team had. Anyway, he ended up in Houston and things were starting to look up. In his first season there, he averaged 18.3 points, 12.2 rebounds, and 1.8 blocks per game. It was the last season where he dominated in his typical fashion.
Now, the 2014–2015 Houston Rockets took the NBA by surprise. Not because of Dwight Howard, but because of James Harden. Harden, after many saw potential in him, came into his own that season. Howard was still a vital part of that team, but his playoff experience is truly where is value came to fruition. He averaged 16.4 points, 14.0 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks per game in the playoffs. Howard anchored that team. It’s not as if he had to take over, per say. It was more about selflessness and letting James Harden do his thing.
His run with Atlanta was mediocre, but he still showed signs of being a solid center in the NBA. He averaged 13.5 points and 12.7 rebounds per game. If you want someone who can still be a true center, Dwight Howard can do just that. Sure, he doesn’t have a three point shot, but he’s working on that:
“I’ve been working on my 3’s, really trying to add some range to my game,”
So take that for what it’s worth.
Anyway, Dwight Howard has spent a good chunk of his career in scrutiny. Whether it’s for leaving Orlando, or the Kobe beef, or not getting it done in Houston, you can’t take away Dwight Howard’s on-court talent. Yes, he’s not as great as he used to be, but he was still great.
Of any true center who’s played over the past decade, Howard is the best. Statistically, you can put him up there with guys like Patrick Ewing and Dikembe Mutombo. All around, I’d say D-12 has had himself a career. While not linear by any means, his career matches up well with some of the best in the game. So, keep doing you, Dwight. You seem to do it well.
