Longtime NBA center Dwight Howard officially announced his retirement from basketball on Thursday (Twitter link).
Howard, who was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2025, last played in the NBA during the 2021/22 season. He has spent the past few years playing in Taiwan, Puerto Rico, and in the BIG3.
The first overall pick in the 2004 draft, Howard immediately became the starting center for the Magic and spent the next eight seasons in Orlando, winning three Defensive Player of the Year awards with the team and finishing in the top five in MVP voting in four consecutive seasons from 2008-11. The Magic made the playoffs in six straight years during Howard’s tenure, appearing in the NBA Finals in 2009.
From 2012-22, Howard bounced around the NBA, spending time with the Lakers, Rockets, Hawks, Hornets, Wizards, and Sixers. He had three separate stints with the Lakers during that decade and won his first and only championship with the team in 2020.
Howard earned eight straight All-Star nods and appeared on eight All-NBA teams, including five First Teams, from 2006-14. In addition to winning DPOY three times, he made an All-Defensive team five teams, including claiming a spot on the First Team for four years in a row from 2009-12.
Howard, who played 18 seasons, led the league in rebounding five times and currently ranks 10th on the NBA’s all-time rebounding list. He was also the league leader in blocked shots twice and ranks 13th all-time in that category.
The 6’10” big man didn’t play college basketball but fortified his Hall of Fame résumé by winning an Olympic gold medal with Team USA in Beijing in 2008.
In 1242 regular season games, including 1078 starts (31.8 minutes per contest), Howard averaged 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds, 1.8 blocks, and 0.9 steals while shooting 58.7% from the field and 56.7% from the foul line.
One of the most underrated NBA players of all time. 4x DPOY, top 3 in MVP discussions, and an NBA Finals appearance. Congratulations to D-12
I don’t know that he was tremendously underrated, I think he gets his respect. He was a heck of a player.
I think a huge level of disrespect was leaving him off the NBA 75th Anniversary Top 75 list. His 8 All NBA selections is tied for 30th all time, yet he he didn’t get picked while Ray Allen, Reggie Miller and Dennis Rodman, who collectively had fewer All NBA teams than D12, all got in.
I’d put Ray Reggie and Dennis over Dwight as well
Dennis Rodman, probably. But not Reggie Miller. Come on. I know that there’s nostalgia there but in no world is Reggie Miller more deserving of Top 75 over Dwight Howard.
Hence the disrespect. Howard was first team All NBA 5 times. Allen none. Miller none. Rodman none.
I doubt you could come up with any objective criteria that would put those three players in the all time top 75 and leave Howard out.
Picking Rodman over Howard is indefensible.
2 time dead beat dad as well
The site is called hoops rumors, not dirty laundry. Have some class, derelict.
I loved that ’09 team that came up short against the lakers, they were so fun to watch and were actually well ahead of their time (long at 4 out of 5 positions, lots of shooting). In another era he would have enjoyed more success.
Bro retired because his wife showed his 10 gallon bag of ICEEEEE on live haha
Meanwhile, the Jazz sign some “Bez Mbeng” guy over Dwight.
The G-League was a mistake. 10-day deals to unknown cookie-cutter 6’6″ defense-first players over veterans…
I put Walt Frazier/Anthony Edwards/Chris Morris/Derrick Favors/Dwight Howard vs any 5 that any city (other than LA) has to offer all-time. Dwight still the best that they city/state has produced since Frazier & that’s saying a lot. Obv a HOF player but it was/is his overall jovial/joyous demeanor that always stood out to me. Terrible the way espn & American media in general turned on him & made him a villain during the time he should have been celebrated the most. Pretty much every great Black American athlete has had to deal with being villainized tho so hopefully he (along with Embiid, Westbrook, etc) has learned to take it as a source of pride… link to m.youtube.com
Ok, Thomas Sankara, let me know when the Burkinabe people stop the coups
Zeke Rose Mark Aguirre Anthony Davis and George Mikan.
Honorable mention Kevin Garnett
Thats who I would want for my city.
I can’t be the only one that thought he was already retired right?