Dwight Howard has had a bad rep around the league over the years, and a recent report has seemingly added to his list of misbehaviors.
According to John Hollinger of The Athletic, Howard has had a habit of whiffing on screens given a particular situation.
“The Lakers also brought in Dwight Howard, who will rack up rebounds if healthy but may not help in other respects, especially if he still dreams of post-up glory,” wrote Hollinger. “Multiple sources indicated that in at least one recent stop, Howard would intentionally whiff on screens if he knew the next option was a post up for him.”
This could be one reason why teams have been wary of Howard and why he wasn’t one of the prime free-agent targets this offseason. Dan Feldman of NBC Sports, however, offered this counter-assessment of the report from Hollinger:
“How many times did Howard connect on a screen when the next option would’ve been a post up? How many times did he whiff on a screen when it wasn’t followed by a post up? I wouldn’t be surprised if selective memory influenced this assessment.
“This is the type of story people like to spread about Howard… in part because it sounds exactly something he’d do.”
Statistically, Howard continues to rack up decent numbers for a center. Last season, while playing for the Washington Wizards, he still managed to average 12.8 points and 9.2 rebounds despite playing in only nine games due to injuries. Prior to his stint in Washington, Howard was a perennial double-double threat from the time he entered the league in 2004.
Regardless of his bad rep, the 33-year-old center has a chance this season to reclaim a little bit of his former glory with the Orlando Magic, where he was a three-time Defensive Player of the Year. Howard can anchor the Lakers’ defense in the paint and trigger the fast break.
Howard signed a one-year, non-guaranteed deal with the Purple and Gold this summer after being waived by the Memphis Grizzlies in August.
