Despite his sharp decline in popularity and offensive production, Howard still led the league in rebounding during the 12-13 season. From time to time you could see glimpses of Howard at his peak (which is weird to say seeing as how he is still really young), but he never quite put it together. His inability to sink free throws and the D'Antoni system of not maximizing his big man crippled him. Even with his sub par season with the Lakers, he is still the most coveted big man in the game and has more than enough years left in the tank to prove his worth. He may be the most coveted big man in the game, but is he the best and where does he stand going forward, thats what we need to ask ourselves. Has all the drama been worth it and if it has how do we measure that?
Before Howard came into the league, the NBA was going through a dry spell for "Traditional" big men. The last two actual impact bigs, Shaquille O'Neal and Tim Duncan had already achieved Hall of Fame credentials and were on the down swing. The "Modern Bigs" spearheaded by Kevin Garnett and Rasheed Wallace, were thriving and had opened the door for the "Non Traditional" big man. The Foreign/Hybrid wave brought us high skill, less physical bigs the likes of Pau Gasol, Dirk Nowitzki and Chris Bosh. Despite the evolution of the five spot, many teams and critics still longed for the traditional big. This led to the likes of Eddie Curry, Kwame Brown, Andrew Bogut and Kendrick Perkins being drafted with hopes of becoming dominant pivots.
In the years since Dwight Howard, the big man has seen a resurgence. Miami's brand of basketball has forced teams to choose sides. A team either goes really big along the front lines or attempts to become equally as athletic and goes away from the bigs all together. This is why Dwight Howard is such a hot commodity, he has the ability to become a great traditional big, while having all of the tools of the moder big. He doesn't shoot the ball as well as a Pau Gasol or Dirk Nowitzki, but he is more athletic. He has a great feel around the goal and is the best defender in the league not named LeBron James. In order for us to properly evaluate Dwight, we have to look at his counterparts. Below I have 3 sections. The first is all Dwight, the next is best 5 bigs statistically in the league and finally the new wave of bigs that can challenge for the crown. Use the information to determine for yourself whether or not he is worth it. Men lie, women lie...Numbers don't...(Jay-Z).
Dwight Howard
Measurements: 6-11, 265
Career: 9 years: 8 with Orlando, 1 with LA
Career Averages: 18 pts, 13 rebs, 2 blks
Defining moment: 2009: 40 pts, 14 rebs against Cleveland Cavs in ECF.
Story: Drafted in 2004 out of high school. Has the frame of a traditional big, athleticism of a swing man and is a Hall of Fame caliber defender. Commands a double team when on his "A" game and essentially can't be contained within 12 ft of the goal. He can step out to 16 feet and uses a baby hook around the goal. Can't shoot free throws, but many of the greats (Wilt Chamberlain, Shaquille O'Neal) couldn't either so can't really hold that against him.
Accomplishments: 3x Defensive Player of the Year, 7x All Star, 5x Rebound Champ
Top Bigs
1. Marc Gasol
Career Stats: 5 years, 17 pts, 8 rebs
Defining moment: 2013: 23 pts, 11 rebs, 6 blks vs OKC Western Conference Semis
Reigning Defensive Player of the Year
2. Joakim Noah
Career Stats: 6 years, 9pts, 9 rebs, 1 blk
Defining moment: 2013: 23 pts, 21 rebs, 11 blks vs 76ers (1 of 6 players to ever accomplish a triple double with 20 + points, 10 + blocks and 20 + rebounds)
3. Roy Hibbert
Career Stats: 5 years, 11 pts, 7 rebs, 2 blks
Defining moment: 2013: 21 pts, 12 rebs, 5 blks vs NYK Eastern Conference Semis
4. Brook Lopez
Career Stats: 5 years, 18 pts, 7 rebs, 2 blks
Defining moment: 2013: 38 pts, 11 rebs vs Dallas Mavericks
5. DeMarcus Cousins
Career Stats: 3 years, 16 pts, 10 rebs, 1 blk
Defining moment: 2012: 41 pts, 12 rebs vs PHX Suns
Next Generation:
1. Andre Drummond
Career Stats: 1 year, 8 pts, 8 rebs, 1 blk
Defining moment: 2013: 29 pts (10-11 fg), 11 rebs
2. Serge Ibaka
Career Stats: 4 years, 10 pts, 7 rebs, 2 blks
Defining moment: 2012: 14 pts, 15 rebs, 11 blks vs Denver Nuggets
Led league in blocks last 2 seasons
3. JaVale McGee
Career Stats: 5 years, 9 pts, 6 rebs, 2 blks
Defining moment: 2012: 23 pts, 18 rebs, 5 blks vs PHL 76ers
4. DeAndre Jordan
Career Stats: 5 years, 7 pts, 7 rebs, 1 blk
Defining moment: 2011, 14 pts, 20 rebs, 6 blks vs Denver Nuggets
5. Nikola Vucevic
Career Stats: 2 years, 10 pts, 9 rebs, 1 blk
Defining moment: 2013: 20 pts, 29 rebs, 2 blks vs Miami Heat
*Often hurt, but when healthy best equally as good as Dwight Howard:
1. Andrew Bynum
Career Stats: 7 years, 13 pts, 7 rebs, 1 blk
Defining moment: 2012: 16 pts, 30 rebs, 2 blks vs San Antonio Spurs
*When Bynum is healthy he is the best combination of skill and size on the block. Where Dwight Howard excels he is weak and vice versa. They are the Yin and Yang of basketball. If Bynum can come back healthy this season he will make a run for the top Big in the game.
Dwight Howard is clearly the top center in the NBA and it's not that close. His experience, size, defensive prowess and skill give him the edge. While Brook Lopez and a healthy Andrew Bynum are his largest competition, they still don't hold a candle statistically speaking. Marc Gasol is next in line and is consistently healthy, but his lack of explosiveness keeps him for capturing the crown. McGee and Jordan have the size, athleticism and shot blocking ability, but lack maturity. DeMarcus Cousins, Nikola Vucevic and Andre Drummond are all at least two seasons away, but have the ability to challenge Howard. Ibaka, Noah and Hibbert are all pivotal pieces on top notch teams, but aren't even the best players on their respective rosters which will keep them from rising to the top.
So in the end, it appears that he is worth the squeeze. This is just my opinion, but you can't say I didn't back it up.
The Draft Fanatic
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