Breaking Down How Dwight Howard Fits After Signing with Atlanta Hawks
Dwight Howard agreed to terms with the Atlanta Hawks on a three-year, $70.5 million deal on Friday, per Shams Charania of The Vertical.
Based on the article, Howard’s hometown team must have knocked his socks off:
"Howard and his agent, Perry Rogers, finalized the agreement on Friday afternoon in Atlanta. Howard had scheduled meetings on Saturday, but canceled them after coming to terms with Atlanta.
The deal averages $23.5 million in salary, the highest amount for a center so far in free agency.
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Chris Broussard of ESPN reported after the meeting that a “league source” shared his observations. "It was a really, really, really good meeting," the source said. "Very impressive. Dwight's going to look at all his options. But it went very, very well."
Storylines
Broussard mentioned in his report that Atlanta was Howard’s only meeting.
One of the meetings was going to be with the Boston Celtics, who desperately tried to land a star by trading some of their many assets and failed. This adds to what looks like a disappointing offseason for them—at least up to this point.
The big question that remains is what will happen with the Hawks starting center from last year, Al Horford, and free-agent wing Kent Bazemore. As Zach Lowe of ESPN.com points out, the Hawks are certain to lose at least one of them:
And possibly both:
The Hawks already dealt their starting point guard, Jeff Teague, to the Indiana Pacers in a three-way trade that included the Utah Jazz and returned a No. 12 pick that they used on Taurean Prince.
As many as three of the Hawks' starting five could change this summer, so this inking marks a new direction for a team that advanced to the Eastern Conference Finals and had the league’s second-best record just two seasons ago.
X’s and O’s
Howard is a better player than he showed in Houston, and it was evident to anyone with eyeballs that his chemistry with James Harden was beyond bad. So evaluating Howard on last year’s performance is not entirely fair.
What we do know is that he is an exceptional pick-and-roll player when given the chance to show it. He was effective—even if underutilized—when he was the roll man. He averaged 1.10 points per play and shot 63 percent on such plays, according to NBA.com.
New starter Dennis Schroder is an excellent driving point guard who kicks the ball out to his three-point shooters well. But a good number of his dimes are also under the basket, according to his assist chart at NBASavant.com.
Schroder has never had a roll partner like Howard, so he could be an even better passer in that regard than we’ve seen, but it’s untested. If that works out, the Hawks have enough three-point shooting to give Howard space under the rim, and that could allow him to wreak havoc on NBA teams.
Fit and Finish
Head coach Mike Budenholzer has a brilliant offensive mind and has been able to deploy whatever weapons he’s had at his disposal effectively. Look for him to design plays that give Howard more opportunity to succeed.
In Paul Millsap, Howard will also enjoy the best power forward he’s ever played with, arguably on both sides of the ball. And it's not just the talent; they complement one another quite nicely.
Millsap stretches the court, having shot 34.4 percent from the three-point line during his first three years in Atlanta. That should give Howard more space to operate under the rim with the kind of four-out, one-in offense he thrived in while he was with the Orlando Magic.
Millsap was named to the All-Defensive team last season. He is spry and can guard the perimeter. Having Howard, one of the better rim protectors in the league when engaged, to cover his back makes for an impressive frontcourt tandem.
The rest of the roster fits well too.
This might be the best defensive team Howard has ever had around him. The Hawks owned the second-best defensive rating in the league last year, per NBA.com; though the potential loss of Horford and/or Bazemore will impact that.
Thabo Sefolosha is an elite defender on the wings. Tiago Splitter and Mike Scott can more than hold their own. And even Kyle Korver, who was once a defensive liability, has become a plus defender because of his effort and high basketball IQ.
One of history’s greatest three-point shooters, Korver (42.9 percent lifetime) can stretch the court on offense. Bazemore, if he should return, is a solid three-and-D wing who enjoyed a spectacular breakout season.
With about $19 million to work with, the Hawks might be able to get a deal done there. Even if Bazemore leaves, though, the Hawks are good at developing that type of player. The departure of DeMarre Carroll last summer was expected to hurt the Hawks’ defense, but instead, it improved.
The one question is Howard’s health. He only missed 11 games last season, which is an acceptable figure. But in 2014-15, he missed half the season. Probably the bigger red flag for Atlanta than how well Howard plays is how often.
This is a good fit, certainly better than the disastrous situation he left in Houston. Howard will be playing with a chip on his shoulder and with the best opportunity to succeed he’s had since he was with Orlando.
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