Houston Rockets: Dwight Howard Fails At Much More Than Paying Traffic Violations
By jasaad
From mooning a camera man in the Los Angeles Lakers’ locker room to cracking 5-year-old jokes and giggling on the court, Dwight Howard‘s name has constantly been synonymous with immaturity throughout his drama-stricken NBA career. Currently, it’s been reported that the big man’s irresponsibility has prohibited him from cruising around in a vehicle.
Howard’s most recent act of lunacy was reported by Rueters:
"The driver’s license of Houston Rockets eight-time All-Star center Dwight Howard has been suspended in Florida for his failure to pay a fine for running a red light, court records show.Howard, who played for the NBA’s Orlando Magic from 2004 to 2012, racked up 10 tickets for running red lights while in the Orlando area.He also has on his Orlando court record four speeding tickets, 12 citations for failing to pay highway tolls and one for failing to change his address on his license, all civil traffic infractions."
Now, It’s understandable for anyone, including Howard, to garner a few speeding tickets. After all, a guy like Howard has got enough dough to afford fast cars and he’s only fulfilling his due diligence by pushing the pedal to the metal; however, neglecting to pay fines is not something they pin medals on you for.
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Howard’s delinquency will surely cost him more than just the money in his pocket, as he literally drove himself to a license suspension.
Howard’s immaturity and negligence to pay off some tickets translates to much more than his fans are willing to admit: his game on the court. Not only does he exhibit carelessness when it comes to repaying the government for hefty traffic violations, but the bulky big man also displays apathy when it comes to embellishing his aggressive style of play.
In fact, Howard fails to incorporate craftiness and skill in his reservoir despite the fact that many of the NBA’s greatest and most skilled big men have attempted to spend time nurturing Howard’s game: Patrick Ewing, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Kevin McHale, and Hakeem Olajuwon. Still, the big man depends heavily on his athleticism and power to succeed in the league.
Notwithstanding his lack of ingenuity, Howard’s freakish athleticism allows him to transcend every other big man in the league. It’s difficult to do anything but excel with the level of speed and leaping ability that Howard has inherited. Why should Howard feel the need to expand the horizons of his game if he’s widely considered one of the best at his position? After all, have you seen Howard’s monstrous dunks? He’s such a beast, dude!
Howard’s exhilarating athleticism diverts many of his fans attention spans away from the glaring and critically limiting flaws in Howard’s game; perhaps it even distracts Howard himself from confronting his various weaknesses. Kareem Abdul Jabbar eloquently commented on Dwight’s obvious errors here.
One big man who rivals Howard when it pertains to formidable athleticism is Blake Griffin. I wrote here how Howard should look to Griffin — one who’s enhanced his game, free throw shooting percentages, mid-range shooting touch, and facilitating prowess to compliment his above-the-rim style — as a prime example. It takes a certain level of craftiness, ingenuity, and basketball IQ for an NBA player to hone his talents.
Hypothetically speaking, if Howard was purged of his innate athleticism, he’d have nothing left in his arsenal to show for. The day is coming, sooner than later, when Howard’s athleticism will degenerate — curtailing his NBA career.
It’s up to Howard to integrate skill into his game that will compliment his aggression; enabling him to not only contribute to his team versatilely, but also to elongate his tenure in the league. Should Howard neglect to incorporate creative wit and dexterity into his game, he’ll pay a much more hefty price than that of his traffic violations.