Dwight Howard is set to be enshrined in the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame this weekend, joining an elite eight-person class. His status as a first-ballot inductee is entirely justified, given his formidable career achievements, including eight All-Star appearances, eight All-NBA selections, and an impressive three Defensive Player of the Year awards.
Despite his immediate induction into the Hall of Fame, Howard`s legacy often feels understated. This perception is particularly highlighted by his omission from the NBA 75th Anniversary Team in 2021. At that time, he was one of only 26 players in league history with at least five First-Team All-NBA selections, yet he was the sole player from this distinguished group not to be named to the 75th Anniversary Team. Furthermore, among modern players, Howard stands alone in having such a high level of accolades (five First-Team All-NBA nods) without receiving this recognition, differentiating him from other players with similar achievements who predated the three-point era.
Howard`s game wasn`t without its criticisms. Like other dominant centers such as Wilt Chamberlain and Shaquille O`Neal, his free throw shooting was notably poor (a career 57%). He also registered twice as many turnovers as assists. Despite frequently demanding the ball in the low post, his scoring efficiency there was subpar; data since the 2013-14 season indicates he ranked 62nd out of 65 players with at least 1,000 post-ups in points per play.
The historical underestimation of Howard`s career appears largely linked to its unique trajectory. Comparing him to fellow Hall of Fame center Robert Parish, who exemplifies longevity, reveals differing paths to similar overall career statistics and “wins above replacement” (WAR) totals. Howard experienced an intense, rapid peak followed by a swift decline, whereas Parish maintained a consistent, extended career.
In their first eight seasons, Howard amassed significantly more WAR (78.6) compared to Parish (54.3). However, for the remainder of their careers, Parish surpassed Howard, adding 55.4 WAR to Howard`s 27. This disparity in peak versus sustained performance meant Howard earned eight career All-NBA selections to Parish`s two, but Parish`s sustained production into his 30s and four NBA championships (three with the 1980s Celtics, one with the 1996-97 Bulls) secured him a spot on the 75th Anniversary Team, a distinction Howard missed.
Conversely, Howard`s later career stages yielded considerably less value. His last All-Star appearance came at age 28, and throughout his 30s, he transitioned from being the league`s most coveted center to a journeyman, moving between six different teams in his final six seasons. He spent some of this period playing in relative obscurity before a notable return to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2019-20. There, his partnership with JaVale McGee as a center rotation allowed Anthony Davis to thrive at his preferred power forward spot, contributing significantly to the Lakers` championship run, where either Howard or McGee started 18 of 21 playoff games.
This extended, less distinguished latter phase of Howard`s career often overshadows the truly exceptional heights he reached at his peak. This isn`t just a reference to his literal leaping ability, famously demonstrated with his “sticker dunk” in the 2007 slam dunk contest, but his overall game dominance.
Howard stands among an elite group of only 19 players in NBA history to achieve five consecutive First-Team All-NBA selections. In terms of centers, only Shaquille O`Neal and George Mikan share this distinction. Other 21st-century players on this list include LeBron James, Kobe Bryant, Tim Duncan, Giannis Antetokounmpo, Luka Doncic, and Kevin Durant – a collection of athletes largely recognized as among the top-25 players in NBA history (with the caveat of Doncic being early in his career).
Critics might argue that Howard`s dominance in All-NBA voting was partly due to a perceived weaker pool of competitors during his era. While the center position wasn`t as depleted as it would become later (e.g., 2015-16 All-NBA centers included DeAndre Jordan, DeMarcus Cousins, and Andre Drummond), the players consistently named to the Second and Third All-NBA teams behind Howard did include a mix of good talents like Amar`e Stoudemire (three times), Yao Ming (twice), a later-career Shaquille O`Neal (with the Suns), Andrew Bogut, Al Horford, Andrew Bynum, and Tyson Chandler. While respectable, this list contains fewer definitive Hall of Famers compared to those in other eras.
However, attributing Howard`s numerous awards solely to positional scarcity would be an oversimplification. During his five-year peak, his MVP finishes were second, fourth, fourth, fifth, and seventh, demonstrating his legitimate status as a top-five player in the league, irrespective of his position.
In the initial phase of his career, Howard was an undeniable two-way powerhouse. He was remarkably durable, playing 82 games in five of his first seven seasons and never fewer than 78. He is also one of only four players to win at least three Defensive Player of the Year awards, and uniquely, the only one to achieve three consecutive wins. Crucially, Howard significantly outshone the other three multiple DPOY winners – Rudy Gobert, Dikembe Mutombo, and Ben Wallace – on the offensive end, accumulating more career points than Mutombo and Wallace combined.
Howard`s unique strengths also enabled the Orlando Magic to pioneer a modern style of play well before its widespread adoption. With sharpshooters like Rashard Lewis, Hedo Turkoglu, and Ryan Anderson surrounding a dominant paint presence, the late-2000s Magic were truly ahead of their time. During Howard`s five-year peak, which aligned with Stan Van Gundy`s coaching tenure in Orlando, the Magic consistently led the league in three-point attempt rate. Concurrently, their defense was stifling, allowing the lowest rate of shots at the rim in four of those five seasons, finishing second in the fifth.
Both Van Gundy and Howard`s former teammates credit his commanding presence in the paint for facilitating this innovative approach. While his teammates launched shots from deep, Howard himself dominated inside, leading the NBA in dunks for six consecutive seasons, spanning from 2005-06 to 2010-11.
This Magic squad truly captured national attention during the 2009 Eastern Conference Finals, where Howard was instrumental in engineering one of the 21st century`s most significant playoff upsets. Orlando decisively defeated the 66-win Cleveland Cavaliers, who had previously swept their first two playoff series, thereby preventing a highly anticipated Kobe-LeBron Finals matchup. Howard delivered a spectacular 40-point performance in the Conference Finals clincher, capping a postseason where he averaged an impressive 20 points, 15 rebounds, and 2.6 blocks.
The list of players who averaged at least 20 points and 15 rebounds while reaching the NBA Finals in the same postseason is a true testament to historical greatness, featuring legendary centers like Bob Pettit (four times), Wilt Chamberlain (three), Shaquille O`Neal (two), Kareem Abdul-Jabbar (two), Bill Russell (two), alongside Dwight Howard, Tim Duncan, Moses Malone, Dave Cowens, Elgin Baylor, and George Mikan.
Howard also earns considerable intangible credit for his role as the starting center on the gold medal-winning 2008 “Redeem Team” and for his part, alongside Nate Robinson, in revitalizing the All-Star Weekend dunk contest during a period when its appeal had waned.
Regrettably, Howard`s intangible contributions weren`t always positive. His career took a downturn after 2012, following his trade request from Orlando. This led to his move to the Lakers, famously depicted on a “Now this is going to be fun” Sports Illustrated cover, and, perhaps more critically for his long-term prospects, he underwent back surgery.
Looking back, his three-year tenure with the Houston Rockets, after his initial, less-than-satisfying stint with the Lakers, might be the most emblematic of his career. It perfectly mirrored the life cycle of an actual rocket: burning intensely, soaring to incredible heights, only to eventually descend back to Earth.