Since entering the NBA all the way back in 2004 as the No. 1 overall pick, Dwight Howard has made $240,096,336 through NBA contracts, per Spotrac.

The Orlando Magic selected Howard with the first pick. They signed the center to a three-year, $13.5 million rookie contract. Howard averaged 12.0 points and 10.0 boards as a rookie but he lost the Rookie of the Year Award to Emeka Okafor.

Dwight made $4,179,720 as a rookie and $4,493,160 in his second season. He started to show star potential in his second year. Howard put up 15.8 points and 12.5 rebounds and followed that up by averaging 17.6 points and 12.3 rebounds in 2006-07. He made his first All-Star team and set himself up for a nice payday.

In the summer of 2007, the Magic signed Howard to a five-year, $83.2 million rookie-scale extension. The contract kicked in during the 2008-09 season. Howard made $13,758,000 that year and averaged 20.6 points and 13.8 rebounds. He was the best big man in the league and earned every penny of the extension.

From 2008 to 2011, Dwight Howard won three straight Defensive Player of the Year Awards. During that span, he averaged 20.5 points and 13.7 rebounds and was blocking 2.7 shots a game.

Howard also led the 2008-09 Magic team to the NBA Finals. He averaged 20.6 points and 13.8 rebounds for Orlando in the regular season and 20.3 points and 15.3 boards in the playoffs. However, the Los Angeles Lakers defeated the Magic in five games.

Rumors began to swirl about Howard being upset with the Magic later on. The 2011-12 lockout year was a mess for Dwight and Orlando. Trade rumors dominated the season for the team and everyone just wanted it to end.

It eventually did when the Magic traded Howard to the Lakers in the summer of 2012.

Dwight Howard made $19,536,360 during his one season with the Lakers and averaged a double-double. However, he didn't mesh well with Kobe Bryant or head coach Mike D'Antoni and wound up signing with the Houston Rockets in the summer of 2013 as an unrestricted free agent.

Dwight signed a four-year, $87.5 million contract with Houston to team up with James Harden.

In his first season with the Rockets, Howard made $20,513,178 and put up 18.3 points and 12.2 rebounds. He helped Houston reach the conference finals in 2015 but his relationship began to deteriorate with Harden during the 2015-16 season.

Dwight Howard made $22,359,364 in 2015-16. He only averaged 13.7 points and was ready for his next chapter. That wound up being with the Atlanta Hawks, who gave Howard a three-year, $70.5 million contract in the offseason of 2016. Dwight cried at his introductory press conference since he grew up in Atlanta and was playing for his hometown team.

Unfortunately, Howard only lasted one season with the Hawks. He made $23,180,275 and averaged 13.5 points and 12.7 rebounds. However, multiple reports said he was a cancer in the locker room.

Atlanta traded Howard to the Charlotte Hornets, who were hoping head coach Steve Clifford could resurrect Dwight's career. While he did put up 16.6 points and 12.5 rebounds with the Hornets during the 2017-18 season, Howard wound up having problems with Charlotte, too. The franchise traded Howard to the Brooklyn Nets in the summer of 2018.

The Nets then waived Howard, who agreed to a buyout by reducing his salary by $5 million.

The Washington Wizards needed a center next to John Wall and Bradley Beal, so they figured they would sign Dwight Howard since Wall vouched for the former superstar. The Wizards signed Dwight to a two-year, $10.9 million deal in the summer of 2018. He was excited to play with two All-Star guards in Wall and Beal.

However, Howard only appeared in nine games for the Wizards last season because of injury. He made $5,337,000 but was traded once again after the season ended. This time, Howard was headed from Washington to the Memphis Grizzlies. And as expected, the Grizzlies waived Dwight, making him an unrestricted free agent again.

If DeMarcus Cousins doesn't tear his ACL during a pick-up game in Las Vegas, we wouldn't even be writing this paragraph. The Lakers signed Dwight Howard to a non-guaranteed contract after losing Cousins for the season. The eight-time All-Star had to convince coaches and players that he wasn't going to be a distraction.

Howard signed a $2.56 million contract, and the Lakers guaranteed it after he behaved and played well in a backup role. He was averaging 7.5 points and 7.4 rebounds before the 2019-20 season was suspended due to COVID-19. It was good to see Dwight playing high-level basketball again.