Dwight Howard's Clusterfuck Is Now Houston's Problem

[Andrew]

so after doing this to two teams, we are almost on the 6th page of this topic. the Lebron topic had 7 pages. how is this guy not widely hated like Lebron is? at least Lebron took his time and was decisive about it. didn't waver, was 100% sure. dwight annoys the hell out of me. remember the lovable center of the orlando magic that won that slam dunk contest? i don't either.

From memory, there have been a couple of different threads related to Dwight Howard's Indecision, from around the start of last year's lockout shortened season. I think the LeBron discussion also prompted more responses for a couple of reasons. One, he's the bigger star and a bigger deal. Two, there was a lot of back and forth in the whole "He has a right to play where he wants"/"It was the Decision, not the decision" debate. With all that he's done, I'd say Howard's reputation is tarnished to the point where people dislike him as they do LeBron. Of course with LeBron, he's at least gone on to have success with the Heat, so only the most seething hater will dislike him without giving him his due.

[NovU]

Dwight may be a fool and bit of an ass but I can't think of him as that big of an asshole where everybody should be doing a witch-hunt on him. This Dwight guy is getting shit load of criticism now, mainly for leaving the Lakers. But the bottomline is that he left as a Free Agent. Nothing wrong with that. How things went bad as a team during the season isn't hardly Dwight's fault either. Everybody pointed fingers at each other. Are we still naively hating him for what he's done in Orlando? Seems to me, the kid has learned since then, and handled things rather better this time around. I don't think it was an easy decision to leave the Lakers anyways, throwing away $30 mil possibly into the air. He should have hated playing there that much.

I'm going to root little bit for him and a lot for Harden next season. Hope Dwight's a better person now and help Harden to achieve some great things for years to come. Somewhat brings back the memory of Yao/T-Mac days of Rockets.

[Stress Fracture]

I'm going to root little bit for him and a lot for Harden next season. Hope Dwight's a better person now and help Harden to achieve some great things for years to come. Somewhat brings back the memory of Yao/T-Mac days of Rockets.

Without the injuries, of course.

[hova-]

I understand Dwight. Houston seemed the best place to be for him. I still think people underrated what could have happened in Dallas as everybody thinks Dirk is washed up and the Mavs have no other good players. A Dwight Dirk combination would have been deadly though imho. Well, let's see if the Rockets can contend.

[Jackal]

Dwight may be a fool and bit of an ass but I can't think of him as that big of an asshole where everybody should be doing a witch-hunt on him. This Dwight guy is getting shit load of criticism now, mainly for leaving the Lakers. But the bottomline is that he left as a Free Agent. Nothing wrong with that. How things went bad as a team during the season isn't hardly Dwight's fault either. Everybody pointed fingers at each other. Are we still naively hating him for what he's done in Orlando? Seems to me, the kid has learned since then, and handled things rather better this time around. I don't think it was an easy decision to leave the Lakers anyways, throwing away $30 mil possibly into the air. He should have hated playing there that much.

Only you could make the whole Orlando ordeal seem like a small thing. It's the same damn thing Lebron did. If you're in, you're in. Be a man stop fucking around & say it. Don't promise Cleveland championships and then make them look like idiots on ESPN.

But I digress...Howard isn't receiving hate from me for leaving. I said it all along that Houston is his best fit, spot light won't shine too bright on him over there with James Harden around, they've had good centers of the past but when you've got to follow in Laker legends shoes...that's a different ball game. I don't like Howard because he's a child. He doesn't play with heart (I hardly saw any fire in his game last season) and it's painful to watch when you've been spoiled by watching a guy like Shaq dominate other centers. Just man-handle them.

Howard has no post up game, he flails his arms trying to get low post position. His best attribute is the pick & roll and he didn't want to/couldn't run that with Steve Nash. His screens were soft & he picked up at least 1-2 offensive fouls a game.

Not to mention when the franchise rested on his shoulders...he bailed. Nah, I'm not hating Howard for leaving LA, I'm glad he left LA. Yes it's a loss because he's a solid player, but no...not too sad because he's not a Lakers franchise player.

[shadowgrin]

Good for Houston for having the jerk combo of Harden and Howard.

[hova-]

Howard has no post up game, he flails his arms trying to get low post position.

This is exactly what you traded away in Bynum. If it wasn't for his injuries and his imaturity, Bynum could be right up there with Howard just because of his offensive skills. It's really tough to find any good all-around center in this league right now.

[NovU]

jackal, my post wasn't directed at you specifically.

Andrew Bynum to have 'Kobe treatment' in Germany in September
Speaking of Bynum, I guess it's for the better but I heard rumors on league wanting to ban this treatment.

[_Steve_]

jackal, my post wasn't directed at you specifically.

Andrew Bynum to have 'Kobe treatment' in Germany in September
Speaking of Bynum, I guess it's for the better but I heard rumors on league wanting to ban this treatment.

Basketball tends to cause knee troubles to about everyone who plays it. In a league focused much on it's stars it would be a really dumb move to ban a treatment that allows (star-) players to prolong their careers and generate BRI.

[NovU]

My bad, not specifically on knee procedure. But something on 'blood fusion procedure' which, if true, sounds pretty crazy.

Can anyone from Germany confirm what exactly is that Kobe went through became such an issue?

[_Steve_]

During the procedure blood is taken from the spine. The blood undergoes a "special treatment" and is injected to the ailing region. This method is usually used to help people suffering from arthritis.
That unknown "special treatment" seems to be what causes trouble.

[hova-]

haha, only because we are Germans, we don't know about that stuff at all. Also, Kobe coming to Germany did not interest anybody here. You might have read it on NBA.de but the masses did not even care: that's how popular the NBA is over here.

[benji]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Orthokine

http://www.grantland.com/story/_/id/779 ... -treatment

[_Steve_]

Well at least I have not heard about any soccer stars which underwent that procedure... Kobe was the first who caught my interest but as hova- said, it wasn't anything German press wrote about.

[benji]

“It was on the Fourth of July,” Howard said. “That’s when I felt it was Houston. I was in Colorado. It seemed like every person that I met was from Houston. It was just so ironic. I’d walk around. Someone would ask for a picture. They’d give me a business card and it would say Houston on it. I was like, “Is everybody in Colorado from Houston right now?’ It was unbelievable.

“I was like, ‘You know what, this has to be from God.’ You pray for things to happen. You pray for signs, for God to show you things. It just seemed like, this was it.”

beautiful

When The Finals ended this season, Parsons watched the Heat celebrate and sent Howard a text that read, “Come to Houston. That could be us.” Howard, however, said that he could not stand watching another championship won by another team.

“What he said, he was on point,” Howard said. “But I tried not to watch The Finals because it (ticked) me off to point I would get mad, start, crying. I was so upset because I worked extremely hard. I’ve been to the Finals. I’ve tasted it. I’ve seen that trophy. I’ve been four games away from winning a championship. It hurt to watch other people win. I was like, ‘Man, I hate to see other people win this championship.’ I’m so passionate about it. When he said that, I know he wants to win, but if there’s anybody that wants the trophy it’s me.

“The biggest thing was a championship potential. I watched the team after we got out of the playoffs. I looked at their team. I looked at a couple teams. Their team just stood out. I think this is the best fit for me as far as playing basketball. I’m looking forward to it.”

[stereoxide]

Lakers fans should let him move on in his career. Although that Bynum trade meant a one year rental for Howard and Clark and of course Duhon.

[Sauru]

Lakers fans should let him move on in his career. Although that Bynum trade meant a one year rental for Howard and Clark and of course Duhon.

they still got more out of it than if they kept bynum lol

[Brave Sir Rubin]

Fuck Dwight. I hope he fathers 8 more children and they all end up stuck in fucking Houston for the rest of their lives.



- A Magic fan.

[Jackal]

Indeed, Laker fans are making too much of a big deal about him leaving, Houston was a better fit. It's not the end of the world. It's Dwight Howard, I felt worse when a real LA big man #34 had to go because of silly feuding.

[Patr1ck]

Smart decision from Dwight, imo. Lakers are questionable. Old roster with an aging injured superstar, a coach who has a system based on athleticism, and just a crazy rollercoaster season.

Houston did quite well in the playoffs. Dwight Howard is probably the missing piece that will put them in contention.

[hova-]

One thing I still dont understand is why the Lakers seriously don't question Mike D'Antoni. Somehow he is crippling this franchise. A good coach is always a reason for players to sign with a club. Does not seem so with D'Antoni.

[_Steve_]

The Lakers of old would have fired him by now. But those Lakers found an end with the death of Jerry Buss. Lakers fans can only hope that Phil's girl will take over rather sooner than later. Jim Buss is a bust...

[Jackal]

Indeed, D'Antoni was a terrible choice from the word go. That's thanks to Jim. Now Brian Shaw is going to do amazing. The Lakers should have hired him as soon as Phil decided to take some time off & they would've avoided both Mike situations.

[Jeffx]

One thing I still dont understand is why the Lakers seriously don't question Mike D'Antoni. Somehow he is crippling this franchise. A good coach is always a reason for players to sign with a club. Does not seem so with D'Antoni.

That's what I've been saying, hova. IMO, that's the main reason Dwight went to Houston. As we all know, Pringles couldn't coach defense or big men if his life depended on it. And he's too stubborn to adjust his system to the talent at his disposal.

Now Dwight's playing for a cat who knows something about post play. It's time for Dwight to grow the f*** up, listen to McHale, and improve his game. He has no more excuses.

It'll be interesting to see the dynamic between Howard & Harden. Could be a problem if Harden continues taking so many shots. It's something they'll have to work out.

[shadowgrin]

Now Brian Shaw is going to do amazing. The Lakers should have hired him as soon as Phil decided to take some time off

Since Phil Jackson said he wanted to be more of a consultant/assistant role like Tex Winter was to him, if Shaw was the Lakers coach Phil could still be on that Lakers bench without the need for firing or replacing Shaw just to get Phil back. If only that's the case.