I think Dwight will benefit greatly from a change of scenery. If we could somehow magically remove the chemistry/relationship factor from building a roster, on paper Dwight would improve the Rockets significantly. Unfortunately, the chemistry just wasn't there. And apparently he's the type of player who feels the most comfortable and engaged when there's good atmosphere in the locker room.
Good for him, Hawks are a selfless team where he will get some shots because they have great ball movement. Still, it's early and he looked great for us in the beginning too..
The Rockets promised to feed Dwight the ball in the post, which was a point of contention he had with the Lakers. That was big part of the Rockets' presentation too woo Dwight in free agency --- McHale was gonna fulfill Dwight's dreams of becoming a low post beast. Dwight & Harden were gonna be like Shaq & Kobe. Other suitors like the Lakers & Mavs were way more honest with their presentations to Dwight. Kobe was infamously blunt with Dwight's flaws in a cringe-inducing presentation. Rick Carlisle wanted Dwight to play a Tyson Chandler type role... which was kind of insulting. On the other hand, the Rockets told Dwight everything he wanted to hear, just to get him to sign the dotted line. So Dwight came to Houston with all the wrong expectations. He thought he was going to be a co-star to Harden, not a sidekick. He thought the Rockets were going to feed him the ball in the post... but after some obligatory attempts in the first few months, they (rightly) gave up on that idea. Dwight thought he was going to be made a legendary scorer in the post for Houston, like Moses, Hakeem, and Yao. Instead he became a glorified garbageman who had fewer shot attempts than scrubs like Ariza, Beasley, and Thornton. I seriously doubt Atlanta made him any of those false promises last summer. And at this point in his career, I doubt Dwight has any delusions of grandeur for himself anymore. Most importantly, there's a terrific coach in Atlanta who had learned from the best. Dwight won't be a problem there like he was in Houston.
We fed him the ball in the post more than any other player got the ball in the post in the entire NBA. It WAS NOT a false promise, period.
I say it was a false promise because Morey was smart enough to know Dwight didn't have the skills to be anything other than a pick n' roll big. Everybody knew it, even before Dwight came to Houston. The Lakers knew it, the Magic knew it, and the Rockets knew it. It was obvious even to armchair GMs in this forum. But Dwight was a man-child in denial, with delusions of grandeur. He wanted to be Shaq v2.0. And so the Rockets fed him that fantasy to get him to sign the dotted line. People blame Dwight for his years of discontent in Houston. Dwight deserved to be blamed, but the Rockets deserved some of it as well. They promised him things they knew would never happen, and set him up for inevitable disappointment.
Dwight brought new life to the Atlanta Hawks with his rebounding and defense. His free-throw shooting has also improved surprisingly
Wouldn't say "new life" versus "different look." They won 48 games last year, and made it to 2nd round. 60 wins the year before. Remember, the big talk in Atlanta last two years was Budenholzer's vaunted motion offense that put 4 players in the all-star game. Do you think they will be much more successful this year losing Horford's passing and different type of scoring game than Dwight helping their improved rebounding/defense? Doubtful they will have the same Budenholzer motion game that Horford fit perfectly as a 5. We'll see what "different look" is better. So far, they've been playing a weak schedule like OKC has.
A rejuvenated Dwight Howard has sparked Atlanta Hawks to fast start http://www.nba.com/article/2016/11/10/dwight-howard-return-atlanta-comes-right-time A rejuvenated Dwight Howard has sparked Atlanta Hawks to fast start During first eight games of homecoming, center has displayed All-Star form Shaun Powell @Powell2daPeople Nov 10, 2016 11:20 PM ET [video] There was another time like this in his life, many years and rebounds ago, when he felt this free and unburdened. He could smile and no one would reach the conclusion that the pearly whites meant he didn’t care and wasn’t being competitive enough. It was all so innocent back in the day. He could be himself and just play basketball. It’s interesting, then, how Dwight Howard at age 30 looks or at least feels like Dwight Howard at 18, except for the added weight. The two have one thing in common: Atlanta. The teenaged Dwight grew up in the city, played ball and had fun. The adult Dwight, who now represents the Atlanta Hawks, is playing ball and having fun. Well, the boy and the man actually share something else: Lots of good performances, even dominance at times, and winning. You might say Howard has rejuvenated the Hawks by giving them an inside presence not seen since Dikembe Mutombo, but it’s also correct that the Hawks have rejuvenated him. Saved him, perhaps, from that NBA dumpster that swallows up players prematurely. Howard has a bounce in his step and it shows on the court, where he’s playing at an early pace that could send him to the All-Star Game for the first time since 2014, and has the Hawks near the top in the East. “Dwight has been tremendous for us, everything we hoped for and expected out of him,” said Hawks coach Mike Budenholzer. Did you give up on the idea of Howard being a top center again? Perhaps, but so did others, and maybe those NBA teams that were cool to the idea of signing him last summer during free agency. That led Howard to return home, where the Hawks craved interior muscle and gave him the chance to play on a team and in a system unlike any he saw previously in his career. “I’m happy to be here with this team.” he said. “These guys mean the world to me. I like these guys. I haven’t known these guys for that long but just spending time with them and talking with them it gives me joy and a determination to come out every night and play hard for them and this organization.” These Hawks are fitting Howard like a superman cape did in the 2008 slam dunk contest. The team doesn’t revolve around him, nor should it, at this stage of his career. Just as important, the team isn’t revolving away from him, either. He gets his touches. He’s involved. He’s made to feel important and wanted. He’s respected. And maybe that’s all Howard ever wanted. more at the link
That was just at the start, if he got enough touches why would he complain to Morey? If you look at his stats he went from 11 FGA to just 8 last year, which is pretty low for a guy who is supposed to play 30-40 mins a night. With scoring in the post you need the right positioning for it, what would happen is Dwight would try to back down the opponent in the post, give it back out and try a different angle and then ask for the post up again. Instead when he kick it out Brewer or Ariza who would give it to Harden, and then Harden would to PNR with somebody else or ISO for the step back J. Stats-wise it count as a getting the ball in the post, but considering he wasn't able to shoot then how would that count as the Rockets feeding him the ball in his mind? Some people here in CF always like to exaggerate, even in a down year when he played really badly Dwight still recorded a double double, averaged 13 rebs and 11 pt on just 8 shots a night. He could have easily done all the PnR that Capela is doing now with Harden, it's just too bad that we didn't have a good coach that would have developed a balance between Harden and Howard.
LOL looking at his starts so far Howard is getting just 1 more attempt than he got last year, clearly the difference isn't really on the number of shots he is getting but rather how involved he felt in the offense. Instead of making him feel important, last year our coaching staff and FO treated him like a Tyson Chandler and just asked him rebound and defend. This is employee mgt 101, if your employees feel important and needed in the organization, they will give out 110% despite the low benefits and salary you are able to give them. OTH if they feel like ****, then no matter how much they receive they won't be satisfied and will start dogging it at work. Losing Dwight is a big blow to the Rockets, we could've kept him for the same amount that we're paying Ryan Anderson. Thank god Nene decided to sign for the vet min, or we would be really boned right about now.
In reality what Dwight did was nothing. If you were old enough to watch Hakeem you would know what calling for the ball on the block looks like. Hell, did you watch Yao? Dwight did not want the ball in the post and that is a FACT, no matter who he cried to in the media. I know what it looks like to want the ball on the block. Houston has a long history of dominant post play and Dwight Howard is not, nor ever was a guy that demanded post touches. Pure sabotage by Dwight to go to the media and claim otherwise. Does he think we are stupid? How many times did he have a great chance to seal his man last year only to fade behind his guy and blend in? He actively took less shots in order to make a point. He actively defended the rim less in order to compile rebounding stats. He actively rolled to defended positions so as to not receive the ball for easy points. He actively overly rotated on D in order to point his finger at someone else, as he has always done. He simply will not take responsibility for anything on the basketball court, period.
