Timing perfect again for Dwight Howard as he soars into Hall of Fame

When change came upon the NBA without warning or apology, when philosophical shifts meant the game would never be the same again, no one had a better sense of timing than Dwight Howard.

He went straight from high school to the NBA in 2004, just before the league abolished that loophole leap.

He arrived as a low-post big man and focal point of the offense, just before that species was diminished and all but declared extinct when the floor was spread and enhanced by the 3-point shot.

Yes, all true.

But most of all, and the reason he’ll be inducted Saturday into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame, Howard took advantage of the situation before the door slammed shut. He wasn’t a farce, unlike some highly touted talents. Instead, he was a force, especially on defense, where he distanced himself from the peers of his generation.

Eight-time All-NBA, three-time Kia Defensive Player of the Year, a five-time rebounding champion, a two-time blocked shot leader — all accomplished by the time he turned 28.

He was both self-appointed and, during the first several seasons of his career, Superman.

A few words about that caped crusader: Howard famously wore the garb and the “S” on his chest during the 2008 dunk contest (which he won, the rare center to do so), and it captured, for both better and worse, the personality of the player.

Howard was hopelessly happy-go-lucky, charmingly goofy at times, and forever searching for a good time no matter the situation. His critics, of which there were a few both inside and outside the league, thought he didn’t take the game seriously enough.

Perhaps more accurately, Howard didn’t take himself so seriously. He knew he was living a dream and refused to be swallowed up by the fantasy world in which he and other millionaire athletes lived.

And most of that time was spent, coincidentally, in the home of make-believe and cartoon characters. Disney World may have had bigger attractions, but none involving basketball, where Howard repositioned Orlando and the Magic not long after the defection of Shaquille O’Neal.

He took the Magic to the NBA Finals in 2009, and in the seasons both before and after that, Howard was arguably the most dominant big man in basketball, especially with O’Neal long past his prime by then. From 2007-10, he averaged 19.8 ppg, 13.7 rpg and 2.6 bpg, and in his first six seasons, he missed just four games.

His career soon took him on a multi-team journey punctuated by false starts, dead ends, injuries, a brief resurgence and finally, a championship with the Lakers in 2020. So this is really about two Dwight Howards stretched over 18 years: one who dominated during the decline of the low-post big man, the other who managed to carve out productivity and longevity during a changing game.

He came into the league as a savior, an 18-year-old who stood 6-foot-10 with shoulders already broad enough to shed defenders and carry a team — in this case, the desperate Magic. Orlando was fresh off a 21-win season and seemingly far removed from the Shaq-Penny Hardaway rambunctious seasons.

Initially, Howard was raw, especially offensively, but steady. In his rookie season, he set records as the youngest to average 10 rebounds in a season, the youngest to average a double-double and the only player ever to start all 82 games directly out of high school.

He actually was a power forward then, but after adding weight, Howard shifted permanently to center in his second season. He was undersized in center matchups, yet had the strength to hold his own against heavier players. And the big difference — Howard was far quicker than the competition.

That’s why Howard was at times unstoppable. He was quicker to rebounds, could beat his man down the floor for dunks and layups, was able to spin free for lob passes and more easy buckets, and reacted swiftly on defense for blocked shots.

His offense was slower to adjust, and Howard’s inability to expand his shooting range would eventually cost him in his career. Still, Howard could dominate in the playoffs, and his 40-point, 14-rebound showing in Game 6 of the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals vs. Cleveland was his defining moment. He was beastly in that game to clinch Orlando’s berth in the Finals.

The Magic lost to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers in that series, and never returned with Howard. By 2012, turbulence between the franchise and Howard emerged, and the two sides drifted apart in multiple ways.

As if that wasn’t enough, Howard suffered a back injury, which required surgery that summer. The injury haunted Howard for another season, which was spent in L.A. with the Lakers. That and frequent clashes with Bryant contributed to a disappointing season. The Lakers went from championship favorites to being swept in the first round by the Spurs, with Howard ejected early in the third quarter of Game 4.

The search for happiness and the right fit was about to begin for Howard. His Lakers experience lasted just one season. He signed with the Houston Rockets to pair up with James Harden, but a knee injury sapped Howard’s production and he never jelled with Harden.

Next stop, Atlanta, his hometown. Again, what began with high expectations soon soured as Howard lasted one season before the Hawks shipped him to the Charlotte Hornets in what was essentially a giveaway.

The next two years were odd. Howard technically spent it with four teams, but he was cut by the Nets and Grizzlies before playing a game. He played just nine games with the Wizards because of back issues. The league by then favored big men who could shoot. Howard was inching closer to being obsolete — along with being old and injury-prone.

This is where he found a measure of satisfaction, in an unlikely place. The Lakers, thin in the middle beyond Anthony Davis, needed big man insurance and took out a policy on Howard, giving him another chance in LA. Although his role would change drastically along with diminished minutes and touches, Howard seized the chance to go out in style.

Which he did. He came off the bench in 2019-20, playing 69 games while averaging a very respectable 7.3 rpg in just 19 minutes per game. Even better, Howard meshed with Davis and LeBron James for that one friction-free season.

To summarize, this was a Hall of Fame career, and actually, Howard had a strong case just on his eight seasons in Orlando alone.

What’s intriguing is how Howard was left off the NBA’s 75th Anniversary team. That remains a sore subject with him, as it should. Howard’s three Kia Defensive Player of the Year trophies and two trips to the Finals should’ve almost automatically qualified him.

Unquestionably, he was among the best at his position and in his role during his generation. The double-doubles, rebounding titles, impact in the paint and his game-changing defensive play placed him in very select company.

In retrospect, Howard was perhaps better off staying in Orlando than his ill-fated season with the Lakers and Bryant, at least from a perception standpoint. But he wanted a championship badly and thought his chances were better in L.A. than Orlando.

Turns out that hunch was true — just several years later, when, by then, he was a supporting player during his second Lakers stint.

Here’s what they said about Howard:

• LeBron James: “While everyone else was writing him off, we felt like we could give him a great opportunity (with the Lakers), and we believed in him. We believed his word, and he’s making the most of it, and we’re truly excited to have him here right now.”
• Jameer Nelson, Magic point guard from 2004-14: “Dude could run and he could catch. You could throw bounce passes, chest passes, over the top, whatever. His hands were crazy .. and defensively, you know people, they see Dwight as silly and playful, but dude was the smartest defender I’ve ever been on a team with.”
• Alex Martins, Orlando Magic CEO: “Players are young when they are playing in the NBA. They don’t recognize at the time the impact that a coach has on them. Or the impact that the franchise has on them. But then they look back on their career and see the many places they have been and the experiences that they had, they know the places that meant the most to them. Clearly, of all the places Dwight has played, this organization, this city meant more to him than any place in his career. We look fondly on his time as well.”

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Shaun Powell has covered the NBA for more than 25 years. You can e-mail him here, find his archive here and follow him on Twitter.

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