Dwight Howard has been traded to the Charlotte Hornets for center Miles Plumlee and shooting guard Marco Belinelli. The Hawks will also swap the 31st and 41st picks in the 2nd round of the draft. For Howard, it is his the fourth team he has played on in the last five years. Howard spent his first eight seasons with the Orlando Magic. Since then, he has played for the Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, and now the Charlotte Hornets.

Howard averaged 13.5 points, 12.7 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks per game during the 2016-17 season for the Hawks.

The Charlotte Hornets improved this season with a record of 36 wins and 46 losses. Although they missed the playoffs, adding a guy like Howard that has size and can protect the rim, may help them win an extra four to five games and possibly make them a playoff contender.

Entering 13th NBA season

As a member of the Hawks this past season, Howard was able to contend in the first-round of the NBA playoffs against the Washington Wizards. They put up more of a fight than expected against John Wall and the Wizards who were heavy favorites. In the end, the Hawks were ousted from the first round in six games.

Howard is entering his 13th year in the league this upcoming season. Dwight is only 31 and was one of the last raw talents to come to the NBA straight from high school back in 2004.

His first eight seasons were the glory days for Howard. He was able to lead the Orlando Magic to the NBA Finals in 2009 but would come up short in five games against Kobe Bryant's Lakers. It was during those times though, that Dwight was one of the fascinating personalities the NBA had to offer.

Times have changed and so has Howard's level of play.

However, seeing a familiar face can help a player elevate their play at a time folks have been calling them a dinosaur in the league.

Sticking to his guns

Unlike stars like Kevin Durant or Lebron James, Dwight Howard has never shown interest in joining forces with another superstar or other superstars in order to win an NBA title.

That old way of thinking could be the explanation for his lack of existence over the last several seasons in the eyes of most basketball fans. In 2013, he was given the opportunity to change that when he was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers to play alongside Kobe Bryant. Howard did not wanna take the KD approach of if you can't beat em' then join them. That attitude showed on the court which in return has affected his relevance around the organization. Yet he still his making $23.5 million in salary for the remaining of his current two-year contract.

Future with Hornets

While Dwight enjoyed his glory days with the Magic, he played under assistant coach Steve Clifford, who is now the head coach of the Charlotte Hornets.

Together they experienced much success while under the command of then-head coach Stan Van Gundy with their one finals appearance. Maybe with the help of team owner Michael Jordan and the familiarity with Clifford, Howard can help the young Hornets team take their game to the next level.
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