Dwight Howard
Teams
Orlando Magic - 2004-12
Los Angeles Lakers - 2012-13, 2019-20, present
Houston Rockets - 2013-16
Atlanta Hawks - 2016-17
Charlotte Hornets - 2017-18
Washington Wizards - 2018-19
Philadelphia 76ers - 2020-21
Playoffs
Appearances - 12 (2007,2008,2009,2010,2011,2013,2014,2015,2016,2017,2020,2021)
Conference Finals - 4 (2009,2010,2015,2020)
NBA Finals - 2 (2009,2020)
Championships - 1 (2020)
Awards and Honors
Defensive Player of the Year - 3 (2009,2010,2011)
All-NBA First Team - 5 (2008,2009,2010,2011,2012)
All-NBA Second Team - 1 (2008,2010,2014)
All-NBA Third Team - 2 (2007,2012,2013,2014)
*(actual in bold, deserved in italics)
All-Time Ranks
Field Goal Percentage - #7
Total Rebounds - #12
Total Blocks - #15
Rebounds Per Game - #19
Blocks Per Game - #29
Total Points - #63
League Leads
Total Rebounds (#1-2006,2007,2008,2009,2010,2012, #2-2011,2013, #3-2018, #5-2005,2014,2016)
Rebounds Per Game (#1-2008,2009,2010,2012,2013, #2-2006,2011, #3-2007,2018, #4-2014,2016, #5-2017)
Field Goal Percentage (#1-2010, #2-2007,2011,2012,2013,2016, #3-2008,2014, #4-2009,2017)
Total Blocks (#1-2009,2010, #3-2011,2018, #4-2008,2013)
Blocks Per Game (#1-2009,2010, #3-2012, #4-2011, #5-2008,2013)
After his senior season at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy in which he averaged 25 points, 18 rebounds, and 8.1 blocks per game, Dwight Howard decided to skip college and enter the NBA Draft, where he was drafted by the Orlando Magic with the #1 overall pick.
As a rookie, he averaged 12.0 points and 10.0 rebounds per game, becoming the youngest player in history to average a double-double and finishing 3rd in the Rookie of the Year voting. He raised those averages to 15.8 points and 12.5 rebounds in his second year, and had more rebounds than any other player in the league.
In his third season, he made his first All-Star team and the All-NBA Third Team after averaging 17.6 points and 12.3 rebounds, again leading the league in total rebounds, and helped the Magic make the playoffs for the first time in his career. They lost in the first round, but Howard was just starting to reach his potential.
In 2007-08, Howard was named to the All-NBA First Team after averaging 20.7 points and leading the league with 14.2 rebounds per game, and he led the Magic to a playoff series victory for the first time as well, though their run would end in the second round. He averaged 18.9 points and 15.8 rebounds in the playoffs, but the Pistons stopped them for the second straight year.
The next season was the best of his career. He averaged 20.6 points, and led the league in rebounds with 13.8 and blocks with 2.9 per game, earning him the Defensive Player of the Year award, becoming the youngest to ever win the award at age 23. In the playoffs, he was able to push the Magic through the first two rounds, then had 40 points and 14 rebounds in the deciding game of the Conference Finals to help Orlando beat Cleveland and advance to the Finals, where they would fall to the Lakers in 5 games.
The next year Howard became the first player ever to lead the league in both rebounds and blocks in the same season twice, and he did it twice in a row. He also led the league in field goal percentage with a rate of .612 and won his second Defensive Player of the Year award in a row, but this time their playoff run was stopped in the Conference Finals by the Celtics, keeping them from a repeat Finals appearance.
Howard had another great season in 2010-11, setting a career high with 22.9 points per game to go along with 14.1 rebounds and 2.4 blocks, and he won the Defensive Player of the Year award for the third time in a row, the first and so far only player to ever accomplish that feat, but the Magic lost in the first round of the playoffs.
In 2011-12, Howard led the league in rebounding for the 4th time in 5 seasons, but was not happy in Orlando, asking to be traded to Brooklyn, and his season ended a month early when he decided to have back surgery. Orlando did trade him after the season, but they sent him to the Lakers instead of the Nets.
Howard numbers were down in his season with the Lakers, but he was still good enough to win the rebounding title for a 5th time with an average of 12.4 per game, but he didn't get along with Kobe Bryant and didn't feel like he fit well in their system, so he left the team as a free agent after the season.
He signed with Houston for the 2013-14 season, and posted good averages of 18.3 points and 12.2 rebounds in his first season with the team, but they failed to advance past the first round again. He missed half of the next season with a knee injury, but was able to return in time for the playoffs, where he averaged 16.4 points and 14 rebounds to help the Rockets reach the Conference Finals, but they fell to the Golden State Warriors one step shy of the Finals.
He played one more season with the Rockets, but decided to leave as a free agent after that season after his relationship with James Harden soured. He signed with his hometown Hawks, but again wore out his welcome quickly and was traded after one year to the Hornets. He had a bit of a resurgence in Charlotte, averaging 16.6 points and 12.5 rebounds for the season, but again was traded after just one season, this time to the Nets, who immediately released him.
He signed with the Washington Wizards, but a sore backside kept him out until the regular season had already started. He finally joined the team and played in 9 games before deciding to have spinal surgery to relieve his pain, which caused him to miss the rest of the season. He wanted to return to the team, but they traded him after the season for the third year in a row, this time to Memphis, who released him.
He signed to return to the Los Angeles Lakers, where he came off the bench for the first time in his career, averaging only 7.5 points and 7.3 rebounds per game, and his averaged dropped even more in the playoffs, but it paid off in the end, as he was able to win a championship for the first time in his career.
He signed as a free agent with Philadelphia last season, once again in a reserve role, then decided to return to the Lakers as a free agent last month to try to earn another title. His best years are obviously behind him, but he still has the ability to make contributions to a winning team.
Howard was a monster early in his career, especially in Orlando. He won 3 DPOY awards, 5 rebounding titles, 2 block titles, and led the league in shooting percentage once. He led the Magic all the way to the NBA Finals once, and to the Conference Finals the next year, and is the active leader in both rebounds and blocks, while ranking in the top 15 all time in both categories. He was well past his prime before he won a championship, but there is no denying how dominant he was for about a decade in the post, and that is enough to put him on this list of the greatest players of all time.
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