Speaking at his Hall of Fame enshrinement ceremony, basketball legend Dwight Howard opened up on redemption after being disrespected by the NBA. Amid celebrations about his Hall of Fame status, he explained why there are still some bitter feelings about his exclusion from the NBA’s 75th anniversary team.
“The great part about it is, I’m going in two times,” said Howard on NBA TV. “The 75-team, yes, it hurt. It was like a big slap in the face to not be on that team, but to go in the Hall of Fame not only for what I did for myself, but to help the USA team win a gold medal. To go in twice in the same year, it’s like God said, ‘I’m gonna double pound you for being persistent, consistent, and always thanking me for blessing you.”
Of all the players excluded from the 75th anniversary squad, Howard was arguably the biggest snub. While he dropped off in the tail end of his career, his 10-year run from 2004 to 2014 ranked among the best of any big man in basketball.
During that span, which stretched from his rookie season to his first year in Houston, Howard averaged 18.3 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 2.2 blocks per game on 57.9% shooting. He made eight All-Star appearances and won three Defensive Player of the Year awards as the best center in the league. In that stretch, he also led the Magic to multiple playoff runs, including to the NBA Finals in 2009, where he matched up against Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers.
Nicknamed “Superman,” Howard was a defensive beast and a monster in the paint who used his size and power to overwhelm opponents. Unfortunately, Howard began to decline in the mid-2010s, and by his second season with the Rockets, his production had dipped and he was no longer the dominant force he once was. Still, Dwight was able to find success when he returned to the Lakers in 2019, helping them secure a championship and finally adding a ring to his list of accolades.
Despite Howard’s achievements and his history of being one of the league’s top big men, the NBA inexplicably left him off its Top 75 roster. In a highly controversial move, they never sent him an invite to be honored that year, instead picking players like Anthony Davis and Damian Lillard, both of whom had fewer accolades at the time compared to Howard.
While some things were working against Dwight’s favor, he has a strong argument to be in the NBA’s top 75 as one of the last “traditional” bigs of the modern game. Today, we don’t see players like him anymore, and his decline marked the transition into a new era of the game.
Fortunately, Howard’s career has been validated in other ways, and he can take pride in the fact that he’s finally getting the recognition he deserves. As a Hall of Famer for both his time in the NBA and with Team USA, Dwight’s legacy is secured, and his career will not be easily forgotten.
