Dwight Howard Wrong to Follow Shaq's Lead and Demand Stan Van Gundy Be Canned

Judging by the start of his career, it’s almost natural that Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard draw comparisons to former Orlando center Shaquille O’Neal.

They have more similarities than simply beginning their careers in an Orlando Magic uniform.

Both have outgoing, playful personalities. Both have been atrocious free-throw shooters. And both have been the NBA’s most dominant center while in their prime.

Both guys also made a plea to have current Magic head coach Stan Van Gundy fired while they were under his tutelage.

That’s where the comparisons should end.

Howard should not be following in Shaq’s footsteps in an attempt to get Van Gundy canned (per ESPN). Not now. Not ever.

Not until Howard actually accomplishes something in the NBA besides acting like a clown.

Throughout NBA history, superstars and coaches have long clashed, and quite frankly, it’s a shame that the inmates have long run the asylum and hold all the power. No coach stands a chance butting heads against a franchise-type player.

While Shaq ultimately forced Van Gundy to “resign” in 2006, at least he was a leader and a guy that had championships on his resume. Not condoning anything that was said or done in 2006 that ultimately led Van Gundy to the unemployment line, but certain players have earned the right to have input in the front office.

Howard is not one of them.

Maybe instead of turning Orlando into a circus for the last five months, Howard would be better served to work on becoming a leader. He doesn’t have an ounce of leadership skills in him and can’t lead the Magic out of the locker room, let alone to a championship.

Of course, Howard’s not entirely at fault. Van Gundy deserves his share of the blame. After all, it takes two to have a feud.

But Howard should be in no position to determine Van Gundy’s job status.

Howard’s accomplished nothing as a pro. Sure, he’s as good as they get and has six All-Star Games and three Defensive Player of the Year awards on his resume, but in terms of real accomplishments, the ones by which his legacy will be remembered, Howard has a big goose egg.

He’s done nothing worthy of being able to get a coach fired. He hasn’t earned the right to have that type of input.

If Howard was a leader, then maybe. If Howard was a winner, then maybe. But all he’s shown is that he can stir the pot, and his team quits and gives less-than spectacular efforts.

He made it perfectly clear during his trade saga that he wanted to be a leader, and he wanted to be the man. Well if that’s the case, then the team’s effort falls on his shoulders. That’s par for the course. A real team leader doesn’t allow subpar efforts to occur.

That’s why Howard will never be the main cog of a championship team.

He certainly could win a ring, but it won’t be as the main piece of a team.

These are the things that Howard needs to become before he should worry about getting anyone fired. Right now, who wants to follow Howard’s lead after the season he’s put his teammates through?

That brings us to the final point of: How can Howard make any demands without signing a long-term contract?

Why should he have any input in coaching decisions when he very well could be in another team’s uniform after next season? Win something first, then make demands.

Quite simply, Howard is probably the last player in the NBA right now that should be making any type of demands about anything right now. He’s dead wrong by doing so, and he continues to turn the Orlando Magic into a circus. There’s no way management should be seeking out Howard’s input on anything right now.

That’s not saying that Van Gundy shouldn’t be fired. But it shouldn’t be as a result of Howard.

He hasn’t earned the right.