Jalen Rose: "the term superstar for Dwight Howard, those days are past"

What is the difference between fans saying it and a reporter or an ex player saying it? the same thing.

Rockets fans have been saying it for quite some time.

If he plays well in the playoffs that is good for the ballclub and he deserves his 20+ million a year.

Otherwise he is not earning his dough.

 

2 words for Jalen.... Paul Gasol

 

I can say with a clear conscience that Gasol was never a superstar and Dwight has been one with Orlando.

 

Saying what Rose is saying? Opinions are mixed here, and if you or I make a similar statement, who cares outside of the BBS? When Rose says it, he has a mass-media platform at his disposal, thus elevating him to Chump Deluxe, a title he seems to wear with pride.

 

Rose is right, I hope that he is wrong, but he is likely right on this one. Howard is not a superstar, you can simply name many others who are better than Howard.

 

Since there's no actual definition for "NBA Superstar"... WGAF.

 

Sure you are right on this one. I just thought he is just nitpicking.

The Rockets need James Harden to totally dominate on Offense and Dwight to do really well on Defense, if he dominates on the Defensive end that is a plus.

But we cannot expect that like in the past because of wear and tear of his body.

I am not sure a player can go 'all out' after experiencing major injury issues.

His movements are a lot slower and more mechanical than in the past.

Rose just stated the obvious.

If Dwight can prove him wrong, that is the best but one should stay optimistic yet realistic.

 

Championship is out the window not happening. You got to have a good coach, play tough defense, and be able to execute down the stretch. The Rockets have neither. And because of those 3 things they want get out the first round.

 

Why all the hate for Howard? He is the ONLY Rocket to actually perform well in the playoffs for us.

 

I bet when Howard's contract is over all these folks in here crying foul about Jalen Rose will be saying Howard doesn't deserve the Super Max.

 

Jalen Rose is a clown but his words hold truth. Since his back injury in Orlando he has not been anywhere near as good. I thought and hope with his great showing in that Portland series the superstar would return but now this knee injury...

 

We still need Barkley to weigh in, once Barkley weighs in the exact opposite will happen.

 

Superstar has a lot to do with perception, feel like he lost that once he decided to sign to Houston.

He's still a All-Star caliber player with good health.

 

I don't really know what "superstar" is supposed to mean. It's a very subjective term in a way. Pau plays the C/PF position while Dwight is a traditional Center. Pau is more of a complete player while Dwight is low-block/defensive threat. When Dwight was at his peak back in Orlando, there weren't that many traditional big men in the game that were actually good. It was basically Yao and Dwight's world. Pau had a little more competition from the likes of Duncan, Garnett, etc.

I think Pau should be considered a superstar because at his peak, he was averaging about 20 ppg with the Grizzlies. When he got traded to the Lakers, he had to play second fiddle to a trigger happy Kobe and still helped that team to two titles. At Chicago, he has rejuvenated his career and became an All-Star again. I won't even begin to talk about how he's the greatest Spaniard to ever play the game and carried the national team to all those international glories.

 

hopefully Dwight uses it all for motivation.

 

This appears to be largely controversial due to the fact nobody can agree on the criteria for a superstar.

But for those who say, "Wait until he's healthy." He hasn't been healthy for years. That's the whole problem. That was the whole point Jalen was making.

I agree completely. He isn't a superstar anymore. He isn't even an all-star for crying out loud.

 

PAU never relied on his athleticism as much as Dwight did, and was largely unmotivated due to a crummy lakers situation.

Apples and Oranges.

 

This is one of the safest statements to make. Think about it, if Dwight comes back and dominates Rose can easily say that the doctors that worked on him broke passed the barriers of current science and healed him. It's a feat of medicine that Dwight plays again at a superstar level. If he doesn't, well then Jalen looks like a being from the future.

A harder statement to make and stand by would be something along the lines of "Kyrie Irving will never win a championship". There is no wiggle room in that. Is Kyrie a bit overrated? Sure. Does he have skills? Sure. Do those actually culminate in a championship? Not sure. If you pick one way, and it goes the other, there is almost no way out of looking like an ass.

 

Superstar, that term can be argued about. My 2 cents. Star of stars.

Someone who could dominate 1 side (Offense or Defense) and dominate other stars.

Dwight was a defensive superstar and only good on Offense.
He could not contain Yao Ming that was his issue.

Gasol just could not dominate other stars over 1 or 2 or more years.

 

When Kobe comes to town, people want to see him or boo him. When LaMarcus Aldridge comes to town, nobody really cares. There's much more to being a superstar than current performance.