Dwight Howard scouting report via Draftexpress

Video made me salivate.

 

Did they show the negative, aka misses free throws?

Once Calvin Murphy gives him the free throw lessons, he should be okay. But, only if he comes to Houston is that service offered! Surely, that was part of the pitch?

 

LMAO, this FG% will catch FT% very soon :grin:

 

i don't care what anybody says. this guy simply makes a difference on the court.

 

lmao i love how he just dominates Hibbert, Duncan, and Gasol with pure brute force even with a bad back. Best center in the league and it's not even close.

 

Free throw % talk is overrated.
Howard makes 5fts per game
Dead-eye shooter Steph Curry cant even get to the line 4 times a game
Howard makes about as many FT's a game as Lebron. That's impact basketball.

 

So when Allen Iverson shoots 40% from the field at extremely high volume, this is just as good an impact from the field as the center (say Shaq) who makes the same number of shots per game but at a much higher percentage?

Let's not get silly, Howard's FT% is abysmal, significantly reduces his efficiency, and is a significant detriment to his game.

 

Still has a negative impact on efficiency of possessions if he isn't hitting them, but you bring up an interesting point.

Dwight, whether he is hitting his free throws or not, gets teams into foul trouble. James Harden led the league in free throws attempted per game. Asik, if he is still around, came in at number four.

Having three of the top four most often fouled players in the league on the same team has got to make an impact. More trips to the line for the Rockets, opposing teams rotating their players more often -- particularly in the post, softer defenses due to opposing players trying to avoid contact, etc.

Getting teams into foul trouble early and often will only make us more dangerous.

 

Though, I suppose, it could also bring the "Hack-a-Howard" slash "Hack-a-Turk" moves in more quickly... so maybe "only" isn't the right word to use. But there are certainly benefits.

 

"Shot an NBA best 721 free throws last year . . ."

(made 353).

Ooops.

 

Err -- my fault. Asik was top 4 in playoffs, but not regular season. Still, Harden and Howard were number one and two.

 

I also never realized how bad this guy's footwork is. Even in his highlight reel, he travels more than D-Wade.

 

Scoring with the clock stopped off free baskets and getting the opposing team into foul trouble is a key to winning in the NBA. Shaq never had any trouble winning titles.

Scoring "free" baskets is different than someone like Iverson chucking from midrange.

No doubt it can hurt you in crunch time, that's an argument in itself. But the impact of someone who gets to the line 10 times a game is enormous. We'd have 2.

Even with his biggest weakness, free throw shooting, he still carries an ability to impact the game in a huge and positive way. That's rare. That's why he's a superstar. That's why Morey has been busting his ass trying to get him for the past 2 years.

 

Dwight's eFG% (efficiency without FTs) is greater than his TS% (efficiency with FTs) only twice in his career, the last two years when he has been banged up. While not a perfect, this should be close enough to say his FT% does not negatively impact his efficiency overall if he can get back to pre 2011 Dwight.

 

Best physical specimen at center, yes. He has no skill though. Everything he does is based off athletic ability. Once that erodes, and it has already started, he will be garbage. This is why players like Tim D. are still playing at a high level at 37. Skill > athletic ability. I'd take to good players with that money rather than just one him.

 

*two.