What?! D12 is hardly a conventional center. Bill Russell could never dunk as far out as Dwight can even in his dreams! Dwight is hardly a center, hes just this really active tall dude. What happens when you lose your athletic ability? see: Francis, Steve.
Howard has a limited back to the basket game. Everytime he posts up and receives the ball, he inevitably faces up to the basket and tries to bull his way in. I'm not saying it's good or bad but he's not a traditional center by any means.
By the time D12 loses enough athletic ability to effect his game (barring injuries), he would be in his mid or upper 30's.
I don't get that at all. He leads the league in blocks, rebounds, and dunks. His low post game may not be totally refined, but it's still one of the best in the league. What else are you expecting a true center to do? If you're saying he's not a center because he's able to run the court and dunk like a forward, then David Robinson wasn't a center either.
skill wise, Yao mings a lot better, especially in the low post. Dwight howard relys mostly on power. but hes still really young and a hella lot of potential. Hes already putting up monster stats without much real skill, and 70% on athleticism and power. just think about what he can do when he gains the experience in 3-4 years. i dont think hell be as dominant as shaq in the post though, hes only 6-11 and a lot smaller than shaq in size.
Dwight Howard could outscore Yao, lead the league in rebounding and blocks, and you guys would still say Yao Ming was the better player. Oh wait...
that is soooooooo true...if you see Magic game, you rarely see them go to Howard at the end of the game. they usually set up plays for Hedo or Lewis. It's cuz Howard doesn't have a solid post game....Exactly right, about how he gets his points..usually off of rebounds or great passes w/the occasionally drive past his opponent.
His game does remind alot of David cuz it's mostly based on his athletiscm..Whereas Hakeem or Yao had the finese, moves and shooting touch. While Robinson and Howard were very gifted physically, they didn't have the post game you'd want of your center..A center w/a good post game, just makes the game easier for his teamates cuz all the attention they get in the post.
DH's better when he is not playing against Yaoming , period stat-wise, he will always be the better guy, except the FT percentage and assists. But i'd rather pass the ball to YAO in the 4th quarter for a post-up play and dont ask me why if u have been watching rockets games
Dwight Howard averages 4.5 points in the 4th quarter this season. Yao averages 4.8 points in the 4th quarter this season. Is Yao more dependable? Sure... but that's kind of a moot point when we can't even get him the ball. When you have a young PG that struggles to defend, like we do with Aaron Brooks, it's always good to have a tall, athletic freak down low to help out. And come on, let's be honest here, how badass would it be to have Dwight Howard and Carl Landry on the court at the same time?
both pretty damn good... their games pretty damn different..... howard is 23.... but yao is pretty damn good at some stuff that howard isn't.. howard is pretty damn good at some stuff that yao isn't.... this could go on and on
I didn't think to compare their 4th quarter stats. You're right that Yao doesn't score much more points, but he also has played 2 fewer 4th quarter minutes per game. Here's a comparison of their fourth quarter numbers, adjusted to per-36 minutes: mpg pts reb ast t/o blk stl TS% +/- per 48min Yao 7.4 23.3 9.7 1.9 3.9 2.4 0.0 0.66 +4.7 Howard 9.0 17.9 14.7 0.8 2.0 2.8 0.4 0.63 +8.7 Yao definitely gets more shots, and he shoots great from the field and the free throw line (57% and 82%, respectively, in the fourth quarter). Compared to Dwight, he's not the same rebounder (which we already knew), and he turns it over much more frequently. But just as important, in my opinion, the Magic have done quite well in the fourth quarters this season. Certainly better than the Rockets. With Dwight on the floor, they've outscored opponents in the 4th at the rate of +8.7 points per 48 minutes. That's strong. The Rockets, with Yao, have done pretty well also, but not quite the same. This reflects the relative strengths of the teams, more generally. So I'm not convinced that Dwight Howard not being a go to guy in the 4th quarter is such a big deal. His team does just fine as it is. Maybe its a good thing not to have to rely on your post player in crunch time.
Or it could have nothing to do with either of them. That probably has to do with the Magic simply having a more consistent formula throughout the year. Our first half of the year struggles and not knowing what to do at the end of games can't help that stat.
Shaq said Yao is the best. Do not doubt Shaq, it is a fact. Yao is the best Center in the NBA because Shaq said so.
