The Golden State Warriors recently decided not to sign former Los Angeles Lakers star big man Dwight Howard ahead of the 2023-24 NBA regular season.
Howard took to Twitter on Saturday and broke his silence after the Warriors curbed his comeback journey to the NBA.
Only as a WARRIOR can one withstand the path of knowledge. A WARRIOR cannot complain or regret anything. His life is an endless challenge. And challenges cannot possibly be good or bad. Challenges are simply challenges. 💯 🫵🏾 go be GR8
— Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) September 23, 2023
Howard was selected with the No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft after playing high school basketball at Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy.
The 37-year-old has played for seven teams — the Orlando Magic, Lakers, Houston Rockets, Charlotte Hornets, Atlanta Hawks, Philadelphia 76ers and Washington Wizards — across his 18 seasons in the NBA. Most recently, he averaged 6.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 0.6 blocks per game across 60 appearances with the storied Lakers franchise during the 2021-22 regular season (27 starts).
However, the 6-foot-10 big man is best known for his time playing with the Magic. He spent eight seasons of his pro career in Orlando and averaged 18.4 points, 13.0 rebounds and 2.2 blocks per game in 621 total regular-season games played with the Magic (620 starts).
Arguably Howard’s best season with the Magic came during the 2008-09 season. He averaged 20.6 points per game and also led the league in rebounds per game (13.8) and blocks per game (2.9) during the regular season.
Those numbers were good enough for Howard to earn an All-Star nod as well as a spot on the All-NBA First Team.
Howard’s contributions on both ends of the floor translated into a whole lot of success for the 2008-09 iteration of the Magic. They finished the regular season with an excellent 59-23 record, the third-best record in the Eastern Conference behind only the Cleveland Cavaliers and Boston Celtics.
The 2008-09 iteration of the Magic also made it all the way to the 2009 NBA Finals, where they lost to Kobe Bryant and the Lakers in five games. Howard had himself a very productive championship series, as he averaged 15.4 points and 15.2 rebounds per game during the 2009 NBA Finals.
Only time will tell if an NBA team will decide to sign Howard to a contract before the 2023-24 regular season kicks off. But Howard’s stats during his time with the Lakers in the 2021-22 regular season indicate that he can still serve as a productive role player for an NBA team.
