[2014] Phil Jackson Comments on Dwight Howard's Season So Far

I can't watch the video. Can someone provide a short recap?

 

Good find and I agree with the Zen Master. Dwight Howard could be doing even better.

 

Basically the snippet they showed says Phil saying Dwight is OK. Not great, not bad.

 

Rick Fox said he couldn't help but think Dwight would have been back if Phil had been coaching.

Phil said "there is a good chance that would have happened"

Phil said Dwight is doing "okay" in Houston and that LA wasn't for him. Costed the Lakers a draft pick and young player. Dwight's game has "gone backward" since the '09 Finals with Orlando. Cited rehab on back, etc.

(my comments...) Certainly true that he is not that player anymore, but I don't know why the LA thing is a story anymore. It's clear that Kobe drove him out of town.

 

Summary:

 

- DH might have given up on the lakers to easy but that could be because the culture wasn't right for him
- Lakers lost a lot for him, mentioned a first round pick and got nothing in return
- as far as how he is doing now, he is doing ok
- has regressed from his orlando days and feels that he has not fully recovered from his surgery and injuries so his defense is not quite as dominant as it used to
- he was hoping that Mchale would make him a more dominant low post player but he is not sure if that has happened yet

 

Thanks.

 

Phil Jackson also said he's not quite the same even on defense yet as he was in '09 due to his back/rehab, etc. And his post game has not developed. He thinks that is one area where he can drastically improve, and says he should with McHale as his coach.

 

Jackson states that Dwight is “doing okay” in Houston, but “his game has gone backwards since 09 playoffs.” He then subsequently states that despite having Mchale as a coach, “his post-up game has not developed;” and continues to say that he “just doesn’t know if that has happened this much this year.”

 

I don't necessarily disagree with much of what he said, though I do think Dwight's post game is underrated at times.

 

I disagree, I think he's back to his Magic days. His athleticism may have dropped slightly but it's not anything noticeable. He's 28 years old not 18, even Lebron has declined in athleticism.

Dwight's back seems to be fine. His post moves are good, it's just sometimes they're not falling in, like last nights game

 

"Well, Dwight is not in a laker uniform, so he sucks. He could of gone back to his glory days like he was in Orlando, with LA, but he didnt give them time, screwed them over, and he hasnt developed an offensive game at all, so he sucks, hes a rockets, so he sucks, defensively hes meh, I could of made him become great instead of what mcfail has done" - Phil Jackson

 

i didnt listen but the recaps here are spot on. this isnt the dwight i was expecting. he could need this season and offseason to fully recover, and next season have a true superstar year.

 

if phil was the coach of this team - we could be GREAT

 

I thought Dwight said he was recovered.

 

all of mchale's perceived faults brought up on clutchfans... phil jackson does but even more extreme.

 

Most interviews I've seen he says things like 80-90%