Dwight Howard: 1994 vs. 2011, How Howard Benefits from a League Lacking Centers

As it currently stands in the NBA, there is one great center. One. Dwight Howard is the only big guy in the middle that is a perennial All-Star.

As it stands right now, there is no center in the league other than Howard averaging 20 and 10. Sure there are a few power forwards that play the game well, but we’re not talking about them; we’re talking about the men in the middle, and frankly, we’re in the middle of a huge drought.

Just how bad is the current center drought in the NBA?

Allow me to take you back to a time when dominant centers were plentiful. Let’s go back to 1994.

If you were a center in 1994, the game was tough for you. Not only did you have to do battle with talented big men such as Horace Grant, Dikembe Mutombo and Charles Oakley, but you had to deal with the Big Five.

Who were the Big Five?

Centers David Robinson, Hakeem Olajuwon, Shaquille O’Neal, Patrick Ewing and Alonzo Mourning.

Just reading that list of big men is hard to believe. And for those who think that Mr. Howard is just as good, if not better, than these big men, let us go to the statistics. 

Last season was arguably Dwight Howard’s best season. In 2011 Howard averaged 22.9 points, 14.1 rebounds, 2.4 blocks, 1.4 assists and 1.4 steals. Not bad by any stretch. In fact few centers have put up such impressive numbers.

However, had Dwight Howard played in 1994, he would have simply been another face in the crowd; in fact, he might have been considered the fifth or sixth-best center in the game.

Compared to the Big Five, Dwight impressively still leads the way with rebounds, however, that’s where his dominance ends. Mr. Howard comes dead last in points, blocks, assists, and third in steals. Not so dominant anymore is he?

In fact, combining the Big Five together, they average 26.8 points, 11.6 rebounds, 3.2 blocks, 2.9 assists and 1.1 steals.

Now, this is not an article designed to bash Dwight Howard. Clearly his statistics are still good enough to put him in the conversation as top center, especially in regards to his rebounding ability. However, it’s clear that Howard might not be as dominant as it would seem these days.

It’s doubtful Howard would have been ranked as the second-best player in the league by ESPN had he played with any real competition in the middle. After all, these other men didn’t just put up incredible numbers, they also had to constantly play against each other, which certainly makes their accomplishments all the more impressive.

Is Dwight Howard as good as we think he is—or is he just benefiting from a rare period in the NBA where there are absolutely no centers in the game to match or challenge his physical abilities?

Without other legendary centers to play against, can we really know just how good Dwight Howard is?

If you ask me, I say he is clearly talented and certainly has the ability to become one of the great centers in the game—but perhaps he isn’t as remarkable as we have come to assume.