During his Orlando Magic days, Dwight Howard was considered one of the top five players in the league. He remained an All-Star level player for a long time after he left the Magic, but it was clear that with age, he was transitioning from a one-man show to a role player. During his last few years in the league, Howard hopped between different teams as a journeyman and was mostly relegated to the bench.
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So, how does Howard himself compute his limited floor time as a former MVP-level player? According to D-12, it is not a superstar’s talent that diminishes with age. But as they advance in age, coaches stop trusting their athletes.
As they become role players, these former superstars start to wonder if they have lost a step or two. They start to house self-doubts and eventually lose their confidence.
When Howard started to doubt his talent because of the treatment he received from his team members, he turned to YouTube and reminisced how he used to run the floor and perform acrobatic dunks.
But the former All-Star posited that the problem didn’t lay with the ageing stars themselves. The problem was the lack of opportunities provided to them and the low margin of error.
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Therefore, he figured that the coaching system had reduced him to an afterthought on the offensive end. His age count was assumed to be an obvious indication of his diminished output even without any evidence. On his Above The Rim podcast, Howard revealed,
“I remember back in Orlando if I ran the floor, and posted up in the middle of the paint, I would get the ball. But here I am playing in Philly, run to the floor, posted up and the the coach is like, ‘Get out of the way, what’re you doing!’ And I’m like, ‘God I’m wide open!’”
Therefore, as per Howard, the perceptions around aging players impact how coaches utilize their talent level. Perhaps this is why teams were unwilling to bet on Howard who helped the LA Lakers win a championship just few years ago.
Dwight Howard is leaving a significant impact on Taiwan
Howard last played in the NBA during the 2021-22 season for the Los Angeles Lakers. Unable to land an NBA job in the 2022 offseason, he turned to T1 League’s Taiwan Beer Leopards. He didn’t have to worry about receiving the ball anymore and had the liberty to hoist as many shots as he liked. Howard swept various top-level honors and was a legit MVP-level player in the league.
The former NBA Center proved he still has much left in the tank. In the 2023 offseason, he gave another shot at an NBA job as he got a workout invite from the Golden State Warriors. But no deal panned out.
After sitting out the 2023-24 season, the 8x All-Star looked in Taiwan’s direction again. He joined the Taiwan Mustangs which are a part of The Asian Tournament(TAT).
He also became a part owner of the Mustangs, taking full advantage of his stardom in Taiwan. While he must be relishing the opportunity of being a superstar in a foreign league, in his heart, Howard would have loved to help out an NBA team.
