Like It Or Not, Signing Dwight Howard Would Benefit The Dallas Mavericks
By Cole Mentzel
He’s not the most popular player in the NBA right now, but Dwight Howard would provide the Dallas Mavericks with skills that they desperately need.
Dwight Howard is among the loaded class of centers set to hit the free agent market this summer. He’s expected to opt out of his contract and join players like Al Horford, Hassan Whiteside and Joakim Noah–all possible targets for the Dallas Mavericks.
The center position has been one of the biggest problems for the Mavs throughout Dirk Nowitzki‘s career.
Since the early 2000s, he’s played with Raef LaFrentz, Shawn Bradley, Erick Dampier, DeSagana Diop, Brenden Haywood, Chris Kaman, Samuel Dalembert, Tyson Chandler and Zaza Pachulia.
Players like LaFrentz, Bradley and Haywood had their years, but never provided the Mavs with the elite center talent that they needed. Only Chandler was able to show us what it looked like for Nowitzki to play with a solid center … and he was only with the team for two seasons.
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This summer could potentially be the best chance for the Mavs to finally sign a quality center that isn’t gone after one season.
Even though he would be last on a lot of lists, as players like Horford and Whiteside available, Howard is the most likely center for the Mavs and would probably be the easiest to attract this summer.
Let’s face it. Howard is opting out and moving on from the Houston Rockets. His numbers last season were the worst since his rookie season, his relationship with James Harden was failing and the recent hiring of head coach Mike D’Antoni signals Houston’s desire to move on.
It's been clear for quite some time that Dwight Howard would most likely leave Houston, but hiring Mike D'Antoni would ensure he's gone.
— Alex Kennedy (@AlexKennedyNBA) May 18, 2016
Even with his attitude issues from the past, there will still be a lot of teams interested in the eight-time All-Star. He is still one of the more physically fit centers in the league and he averages a double-double.
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While teams like the
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might be in the running, there’s no team Howard would help more than the Dallas Mavericks.
Let’s break Howard’s game down and see why his fit with the Mavs would be beneficial for both sides.
Scoring: If there’s one thing that centers playing with Nowitzki have lacked, it’s scoring. Since the 2001-02 season, the starting center for the team has average double figures just three times. LaFrentz did it in 2001-02 with 11.3 points per game, Chris Kaman averaged 10.5 points per game in 2012-13 and, most recently, Chandler averaged 10.2 points per game in 2014-15.
Dwight Howard’s lowest scoring average in his NBA career has been 12.0 points in his rookie season.
He plays well on both ends of the floor, but his offense would be huge for a Mavs team that struggles to get points out of any big man not named Dirk Nowitzki.
Take this into account. Chandler, arguably the greatest center in Mavs history, scored at least 20 points in a game just 10 different times with the team. Howard had 15 games of at least 20 points last season, in one of his worst years as a pro.
He would serve as one of the rare score-first centers that the Mavs have been able to acquire.
His one weakness comes in the form of free-throw shooting, as he shot just 49 percent from the line last season and is occasionally taken advantage of with the Hack-A-Howard strategy.
Howard has always been known for his explosive dunks and work in the paint, including his favorite hook shot, something that would give the Mavs an edge they’ve never had before.
Rebounding: The Mavs have often had other players, like Nowitzki, Shawn Marion or even Josh Howard that have covered up their rebounding issues from the center position, but they were exposed last season, when the team’s highest rebounding average was Pachulia’s 5.4 a game.
Since 2001-02, Chandler has been the only Mavs center to average double-digit rebounds as he had 10.8 in 2014-15.
Howard’s lowest rebounding average was 10.0 in 2004-05. Last season he grabbed at least 15 rebounds in 19 different games and averaged 11.8 per game, good enough for third-best in the league.
Most of that stems from his overwhelming size and strength in the paint. Though we saw flashes of dominant rebounding from Pachulia last season, there’s never been a Mavs center that has snagged boards consistently.
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Defense: There’s perhaps nothing more critical to Howard’s game than his ability to defend. With three Defensive Player of the Year awards, four selections to the All-Defensive First Team and one selection to the All-Defensive Second Team, Howard has proved his impact defending the lane.
To go along with those honors, Howard is a two-time leader in blocks.
Most of that came during some of his best individual seasons in the early 2010s, but Howard’s current defense is still better than any Mavs big man last season and would prove to be one of the biggest lifts for the team.
Over the years, they’ve struggled to defend elite centers in the NBA. They were lit up multiple times last season by Andre Drummond, Whiteside and DeMarcus Cousins and suffered against athletic centers like DeAndre Jordan and Al Jefferson.
Howard certainly isn’t the same kind of defender he used to be, but he’s good enough to slow even the best big men down with his sculpted physique and near 7-foot-5 wingspan. He’s a block-per-game type of player that stops up the lane forces players into awkward shots.
Howard’s regressed in the past few years but would still provide a presence similar to Chandler’s, and one potentially better with the size that he brings to the table.
Howard actually making the move to Dallas this summer all comes down to the pitch he receives.
He’s going to demand a lot more money than the Mavs want to pay, but his former teammate, Chandler Parsons, and the promise of athletic trainer Casey Smith, along with the chance to get more touches on offense, is something that could lead him to making the move.
Rick Carlisle‘s system and the promise of staying in Texas are other interesting factors to consider in the free agency process. Though Howard is not the same player that he used to be, he’s still a top-ten center in the league, and one that could improve in the right situation.
Whether it was his ongoing conflict with Harden or the struggles from the team last season that got Kevin McHale fired, Howard simply wasn’t in a situation set up for success.
A move to Dallas would give him a brighter spotlight, a winning atmosphere and a team that could take a big step forward with a piece they’ve been lacking for quite some time.
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Just signing a contract with the Mavs would make Howard the best center in team history. Sometimes a fresh start can do wonders for a player’s career, and at age 30, a potential move to Dallas would be beneficial for both him and the team.