The Washington Wizards managed to pull the rug from underneath the defending champion Golden State Warriors, quickly securing Dwight Howard's services after All-Star point guard John Wall reached out to him via Instagram.
Owner Ted Leonsis has long heard about the baggage that comes with signing Howard, who will now play for his fifth team in the last seven seasons, recently waived by the Brooklyn Nets after getting traded after one year with the Charlotte Hornets.
“I think that’s a media-generated issue. I don’t think it’s a basketball-related issue,” Leonsis said about Howard, according to Candace Buckner of The Washington Post. “He could’ve signed in many, many places, and really it all comes down to the salary cap. Dwight is paid like a max player. We’re paying him the mid-level exception. He will be a great addition to the team, he wants to be here, and his skill set is what we needed: someone who could run, play defense and rebound. And he’s at the time of his career right now where he’s been paid a lot of money; he’s still getting paid max money [with] the buyout and what we’re paying him. … So, at that price, I think he was the greatest addition we could add at that position.”
Howard's two-year, $11 million deal is a relative bargain for a player averaging 16.6 points, 12.5 rebounds, and 1.6 blocks in his 14th season in the league — but he will have to prove that it is by clicking with the rest of this roster.
The former first overall pick is exactly the player Wall had wanted since expressing it at the end of the postseason, an “athletic” big man that can help at both ends of the floor and impact the game with his rebounding and shot-blocking.
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