How good will Dwight Howard be in his prime if he's not already in it now?

Dwight is younger than Lebron. If Lebron isn't in his prime (He isn't) then neither is Dwight. If Dwight can improve his free-throws, his PPG will go up close to 30. He already has a ridiculous amount of 20-20 games... I think he can only go up from here.

[QUOTE=visirale]Dwight is younger than Lebron. If Lebron isn't in his prime (He isn't) then neither is Dwight. If Dwight can improve his free-throws, his PPG will go up close to 30. He already has a ridiculous amount of 20-20 games... I think he can only go up from here.[/QUOTE]
I don't think so. LeBron actually has skills in his game, example ball handling, passing, slashing ability.

Both do have terrible touch though. Dwight's game is FULLY based on athletic ability. Seriously, where do you think he would be once his athleticism goes away?

He would be useless, He would be another Kwame Brown and just be a post defender and a rebounder.

The only offensive skill Dwight currently has is dunking. He's merely a dunker...

[QUOTE=iTruWarrior]So if you are talking about stats, you would take Dwight. But just overall Yao would be better?

Kind of remain me of Kobe-LeBron, LeBron has the stats Kobe has the rest.[/QUOTE]


Exactly. If you look at the stats he brings you on a consistent basis, he's obviously #1. But Yao brings things that aren't gonna always show up on the stat sheets, a lot like Kobe.

[QUOTE=Lakers13]Exactly. If you look at the stats he brings you on a consistent basis, he's obviously #1. But Yao brings things that aren't gonna always show up on the stat sheets, a lot like Kobe.[/QUOTE]
Whoa what? so is Yao better? or...? Just curious man. Not annoying you, I am a Rocket fan so I would like to know your opinion from a Laker fan.

[QUOTE=iTruWarrior]Whoa what? so is Yao better? or...? Just curious man. Not annoying you, I am a Rocket fan so I would like to know your opinion from a Laker fan.[/QUOTE]


IMO, right now Yao is better. Not taking anything from Dwight, that dude is a beast, but he doesn't have a great skill set yet. Can he develop a post up game, become a decent free thrower, and consistently make a 5-10 feet mid range shot ( if he does have this correct me if i'm wrong, he just seems to dunk and put back bricks for lay ups from what I've seen)? It's possible, but overall, Yao's offensive skill set is far and beyond greater then Dwight's, and their D is on par with each other, but I'd give Dwight a slight edge because he's more aggressive.

[QUOTE=Lakers13]IMO, right now Yao is better. Not taking anything from Dwight, that dude is a beast, but he doesn't have a great skill set yet. Can he develop a post up game, become a decent free thrower, and consistently make a 5-10 feet mid range shot ( if he does have this correct me if i'm wrong, he just seems to dunk and put back bricks for lay ups from what I've seen)? It's possible, but overall, Yao's offensive skill set is far and beyond greater then Dwight's, and their D is on par with each other, but I'd give Dwight a slight edge because he's more aggressive.[/QUOTE]
Great response from a great poster :cheers:

Put skills aside. Evaluate what he does for the team and the ability he gives a team to win a game.

He doesn't need to really develop an outside game. He takes up the paint. If a team single teams him, he will be deadly in the paint. If they double team him, someone else is open, and on the Magic team, that usually means a 3 point shot is about to be made.

As the Magic's system evolves more over the coming years, it will only get stronger. He is the anchor to our system...

I know he'll never put up Shaqtastic numbers, but I think he has the potential to be just as essential to his team, and maybe even get the rings to prove it.

[QUOTE=visirale]Put skills aside. Evaluate what he does for the team and the ability he gives a team to win a game.

He doesn't need to really develop an outside game. He takes up the paint. If a team single teams him, he will be deadly in the paint. If they double team him, someone else is open, and on the Magic team, that usually means a 3 point shot is about to be made.

As the Magic's system evolves more over the coming years, it will only get stronger. He is the anchor to our system...

I know he'll never put up Shaqtastic numbers, but I think he has the potential to be just as essential to his team, and maybe even get the rings to prove it.[/QUOTE]
He'll need to develop outside of the paint, his size is nothing similar to Shaq's. Shaq's size is why he is so dominant and why nobody can play him 1 on 1 even to this day.

Shaq is like 60 pounds heavier and 5 inches taller than Howard. Howard needs to develop outside of the paint.

D.Howard is considered as a dominant big guy cause this is an era in which there are not so many excellent big guys as there were in 90s.

Dwight is a dominant "big man" at 6'10.

Anyway pretty much speaks volumes about his potentially..he wont' sniff shaq who was 7'1 far stronger, bigger and more agile.

Bynum will not be as good as Dwight imo; he's like a third the athlete Dwight is but 2 inches taller.

Yao is actually a lot better than Dwight..cept he gets a third of the foul calls Dwight gets which is BS.

When you talk about a players prime, it's important to differentiate between athletic prime and their "true" prime.

I'd argue that Dwight is currently in his athletic prime. I can't imagine that he'll ever jump higher than he does right now. And in fact, his athletic skills will probably decline from here on out.

It's the little things he learns along the way which will compose how devastating his "true" prime is. If he adds a simple right-handed hook next season, it might not change his game much. But if he then adds a lefty hook the following year, followed by a greater understanding of how to box out for a rebound, followed by much-improved footwork in the post, it'll add up. What you'll then see is a 28-29 year old Dwight Howard in his true prime; Not able to completely dominate athletically anymore, but able to use a mix of athletic skill and "true" basketball skill to still compete at a superstar level, despite waning athletic ability.

What most people fail to understand is that learning these skills is a process. Many bash Dwight for not having these skills already, but when you've dominated with your strength, speed, and quickness for your entire life, why would you ever learn an eighteen-foot jumper? What you must judge by is whether or not Dwight picks up these skills as he ages; If he does, his true prime might not be for another six to eight years.

I hate to say it again, and again, but the comparisons this kid gets to Shaq, is KILLING it for himself.


If he was smart, he'd seperate himself from that 'Superman' stuff already, and just play HIS game.

Hes great, but the comparison leaves a lot to be craved when they do that.

He's not going to be Prime Shaq good, but he'll still be dominant. Prime Shaq was a god out there, and well there are only about 3-4 players that were better than Prime shaq. So it's nothing big if D12 doesn't become as good as Shaq, he's still perfectly capable of being a #1 option on a team and winning a title. I can see him winning 2-3 titles if he is in the right team. Although with the rising of LeBron, Wade, CP3, etc, it's going to be tough for him to carry a team all the way by himself unless he's paired with one of them.

[QUOTE=joe]When you talk about a players prime, it's important to differentiate between athletic prime and their "true" prime.

I'd argue that Dwight is currently in his athletic prime. I can't imagine that he'll ever jump higher than he does right now. And in fact, his athletic skills will probably decline from here on out.

It's the little things he learns along the way which will compose how devastating his "true" prime is. If he adds a simple right-handed hook next season, it might not change his game much. But if he then adds a lefty hook the following year, followed by a greater understanding of how to box out for a rebound, followed by much-improved footwork in the post, it'll add up. What you'll then see is a 28-29 year old Dwight Howard in his true prime; Not able to completely dominate athletically anymore, but able to use a mix of athletic skill and "true" basketball skill to still compete at a superstar level, despite waning athletic ability.

What most people fail to understand is that learning these skills is a process. Many bash Dwight for not having these skills already, but when you've dominated with your strength, speed, and quickness for your entire life, why would you ever learn an eighteen-foot jumper? What you must judge by is whether or not Dwight picks up these skills as he ages; If he does, his true prime might not be for another six to eight years.[/QUOTE]

While I agree with you on the difference between physical primes and "true" primes. In which the "true" prime combines physical/athletic dominance with specific basketball skills. I don't think Dwight is ever going to be in the position will he will be forced to expand his skill set. Mainly I don't think he has the skills to develope a decent post game, or a mid-ranged jumper. Not enough pure skill to be as dominate as Shaq or Hakeem.