Dwight Howard was one of the very best players of his generation, and he is now reportedly set to be given the ultimate honor a basketball player can get. NBA insider Shams Charania reports that Howard has been elected to the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame on the first ballot.
“Dwight Howard has been elected as a first-ballot member of the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame Class of 2025, sources tell ESPN. Howard was an 8-time All-Star, 8-time All-NBA, 3-time Defensive Player of Year, a 2020 NBA champion, and won one Olympic gold medal with Team USA.”
Howard spent 18 seasons in the NBA during which he averaged 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.3 assists, 0.9 steals, and 1.8 blocks per game. He won a title in 2020 and is the only player in NBA history to win Defensive Player of the Year in three consecutive seasons (2009, 2010, and 2011).
Howard also won five rebounding titles and two blocks titles in his career. He currently ranks 10th all-time in rebounds (14,627) and 13th in blocks (2,228).
In addition to his accomplishments in the NBA, Howard won the gold medal with Team USA at the 2008 Olympics. His resume seemingly made him a lock to be a first-ballot Hall of Famer, but there were some doubts, considering how he was shockingly not selected for the NBA’s 75th Anniversary Team.
The snub understandably upset Howard, but he can take some solace from this news. This is not the only Hall of Fame he’d have made this year, either.
Howard was inducted into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame on March 24, 2025. The Magic had selected him with the first pick of the 2004 NBA Draft, and he is arguably the greatest player in franchise history. Howard led the Magic to the NBA Finals in 2009 and is their all-time leader for points, rebounds, and blocks.
Howard’s career, unfortunately, went downhill after he requested a trade from the Magic. He was sent to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2012 but never quite lived up to expectations during his time with the franchise.
A herniated disc in his back contributed to that, and Howard was never quite the same after suffering that injury. He started to decline a lot sooner than anyone had anticipated and became a journeyman in the latter half of the 2010s.
Howard got a shot at redemption when the Lakers brought him over for a second stint in 2019, and he didn’t disappoint on that occasion. He became a key role player for the team off the bench and helped them win the 2020 NBA title.
That championship silenced some of Howard’s critics and could well have been what ensured that he went into the Hall of Fame on the first ballot. He now looks set to be one of the headliners of the Class of 2025, along with a former teammate of his.
Carmelo Anthony has also reportedly been elected to the Hall of Fame on the first ballot this year. Anthony and Howard spent the last season of their NBA careers together on the Lakers, and while that 2021-22 campaign would prove to be a disappointing one, their careers sure weren’t.
As for who else could make the Hall of Fame this year, some other notable finalists are Sue Bird, Maya Moore, and the 2008 U.S. men’s basketball team.
