Dwight Howard urges Golden State Warriors to sign him with a compelling case
As we enter week three of the 2022-2023 NBA season, eight-time All-Star big man Dwight Howard is still a free agent.
However, Howard, 36, isn’t giving up hope of getting signed. In fact, there is even a particular contender that he thinks would be a good fit for his services.
During a recent appearance on the “Club Shay Shay” podcast with Shannon Sharpe, Howard spoke about his future plans. He made a very compelling case for why the defending champions, the Golden State Warriors, should sign him to their roster.
One of his main reasons was that he believes he could provide valuable mentorship to third-year Warriors center James Wiseman.
“Oh man, that’s perfect. I’ve been a warrior my whole life; I started out at my school as a warrior. They need a big,” Dwight Howard said.
“I know they have Kevon Looney and I know they have the young blood [James] Wiseman, but I’m Dwight Howard. Wiseman can learn so much from me because he’s heading in that direction of being a great big man.”
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Howard then went in-depth regarding his potential fit with the Warriors. He even reasoned that his presence on the court would create more space for the Warriors' superstar point guard Stephen Curry.
“I feel like even in that situation, playing with all shooters like that, Steph [Curry], the way he can get open and with me setting screens, he’s going to get more wide-open.
“Klay [Thompson] is the same way. Draymond [Green] in the pick-and-roll with me and him, me being able to teach Wiseman how to play defense and how to block shots,” Howard said.
Finally, Howard added that he would like to win one more title and then go out on top:
“I would love to play ‘Season 19’ and go out on top.”
Dwight Howard wants to return to the league for Year 19, and he has the Warriors in his sight. https://t.co/CHuoxTmNzK
In 18 seasons, Dwight Howard has career averages of 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks per game on 58.7% shooting. However, he is currently coming off the worst season of his career.
In 60 games for the LA Lakers last season, Howard averaged a career-low in points (6.2 PPG) and rebounds (5.9 RPG). He also averaged just 0.6 blocks per game.
So it remains to be seen if a team like the Warriors think they can still get value out of the veteran big man outside of mentorship.
Do the Warriors need another traditional center like Dwight Howard?
The Golden State Warriors are off to a disappointing 3-4 start this season and currently sit just 11th in the Western Conference.
Their championship hangover appears to be real so far as the team currently ranks 24th in defensive rating at 115.2. They rank just 20th in offensive rating at 111.4 as well. The Warriors are also 22nd in rebounds per game at 43.0, 22nd in blocks per game at 4.4, and 18th in FG percentage at 46.5%.
This is where Dwight Howard could potentially add value.
Howard would just need to come off the bench and give Golden State a boost in rim protection and rebounding, as well as some decent finishing around the rim. If he can do that for around 15-20 minutes per game, it could be worthwhile for the Warriors to sign him.
Howard has already proven he can play a similar role on a championship team for the LA Lakers in 2020 as well.
However, the Warriors were able to win the title last year with Kevon Looney as their primary center. They also used a lot of small ball lineups without a traditional big man. Plus, Howard’s arrival could take away opportunities from James Wiseman, who he wants to mentor.
Consequently, there are definitely pros and cons to a potential Dwight Howard signing for the Golden State Warriors. It will now be interesting to see if the Warriors decide to make any early-season roster changes or if they just ride out their struggles.