Dwight Howard‘s knee injury is still lingering, which is why he’ll continue to sit out
Houston Rockets head coach Kevin McHale knows how to ruin a party. With Patrick Beverley returning from injury, the Rockets looked like they were on pace to get all of their regulars back sooner than later. Unfortunately, as Jonathan Feigen of the Houston Chronicle wrote, Dwight Howard “won’t be back anytime soon.”
The Rockets have been without their 6-foot-11 star center since November 17th, when he was forced out of the Rockets loss to the Memphis Grizzlies after 28 minutes of action. Each time it appears progress is made, it turns out to be a mirage, as we’ve seen Howard in a suit for the last nine games.
Coach McHale said it best:
"It would be nice to get everybody else back, but that won’t be happening anytime soon."
Surprisingly, the Rockets have been OK without Howard in the lineup. Including the Memphis loss, the Rockets were 9-1 when Howard was in the starting lineup (they lost one game that he sat out earlier in November). Since Howard has gone down, they’re a very respectable 7-2, which has them in first place in the Southwest Division at 16-4 for the season.
Before his injury, Howard was averaging 18.8 points, 11.3 rebounds and 2.3 blocks per game and was instrumental in leading the Rockets to elite status on the defensive end. What’s been most impressive about the Rockets without Dwight is that they’ve still held onto that title — they’re No. 3 in the NBA in defensive rating and are allowing 94.0 points per game (No. 4).
That’s in large part due to the contributions from Trevor Ariza, James Harden — yes, that Harden, Donatas Motiejunas, Isaiah Canaan and others. Coach McHale has instilled a sense of pride in the team on the defensive end and it’s scary to think how good this team can be when everyone gets healthy. Don’t forget that Terrence Jones is still fighting with his peroneal nerve contusion and will be a big part of things once he can get back.
While Howard is out, the 23-year-old Tarik Black out of the University of Kansas will continue to start. In his 10 starts, he’s averaging 6.0 points and 7.1 rebounds in 20.1 minutes per game.
Next: Is Dwight Howard one of the 30 best centers of all-time?