Dwight Howard Says Goodbye to Magic Fans with Full-Page Ad

For all the grief that fans and analysts gave Dwight Howard about his departure from Orlando—and deservedly so—the All-Star center is saying a final goodbye to the city and fans who gave him the opportunity to make his name. 

In a full-page ad that appeared in the Orlando Sentinel, Howard thanked the city, fans and organization for the last eight years. 

While that will be of little comfort to Magic fans, who are still reeling from seeing the face of their franchise shipped off for what appears to be a bunch of spare parts and a lot of draft picks, it is a classy gesture. 

It is easy to look at the last 12 months of Howard's tenure with the Magic and roll your eyes whenever he says anything. It has not been easy to watch, especially with all the flip-flopping about whether or not he wanted to be traded. 

But when you focus on Howard's tenure with the Magic, there is a lot more to him than just those 12 months. He was easily the best player this team has had since Shaquille O'Neal left, ironically, for Los Angeles after the 1995-96 season. 

The Magic made it to the postseason in each of the last six seasons. They made it to the Eastern Conference Finals twice, defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers in 2009 to make the NBA Finals for the second time in franchise history. 

Howard was the glue that held the whole thing together for a long time. Even though it came crashing down in a blaze of glory, he still left his imprint on Orlando.

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