Legacy of Dwight Howard: why I think he's making the right choice.

I'd like to preface this by saying that I'm by no means a Dwight apologist or fan. I also don't claim that he's thought thoroughly about this, and I don't intend to suggest that this is his thinking. I'll make many assumptions and provide few facts. I do NOT think that everything he has done is good for him, but overall I think he's making the right choice for himself.


Dwight Howard is nowhere near being one of the best big men of all time. He's playing in an era of soft bigs and weak post presence. No one will remember him for this. The Orlando Magic are nowhere near being a contender, and Howard isn't dominant enough to make them contenders. No one will remember him for this either.

He's crying to join a franchise with limited success, a very wealthy owner, a large media market and a fellow superstar. He has 8-10 years remaining where he can win a championship as a centerpiece of a team, and Durant and LeBron will be in his way for many of those years. This is his best chance and possibly his only chance at being someone while making as much money as possible. At worst, he's killing his image, and people will barely remember a decent big that made a huge fuss and never achieved anything. If the stars align, he'll be a winner, and this mess might fade into his legacy. You and I may still remember him as one of the biggest babies ever by then, but history is kinder to winners and contenders. Dwight Howard has a chance to be one or both of these things by joining the Brooklyn Nets.

I may not agree with his methods, but I don't disagree that joining Deron in Brooklyn would be his best career move. Ultimately this is what it is, just a man and his own career.




And obviously the trade portion is just because he's a greedy b**** that also wants max max money. **** Dwight.

 

I think the fact that he opted in on the final year shows that he wants that max max money/years pretty badly. That's really the only reason feasible reason why he's so insistent on a trade rather than leaving in free agency. In all likelihood the bird rights contract is the most important thing to him, and his window is closing if he wants to join the nets AND make the most money possible on his contract.

I think he'd have a much harder time bringing a championship to Houston than if he joined another superstar. He's just not dominant enough to make a team a contender by himself, and he seems to know it. There's probably no other team he could readily join that offers him as good of a shot as the Nets at contending and being remembered.

He would definitely still be compared to the great big men from the past even if he played with the Nets, but if he's a winner, it greatly improves his resume. Aside from that, being able to join a franchise with limited success and a large media market means that at worst he could leave a legacy with that franchise's fan base, and their fan base would be substantial if they contend.