Player profile · ATL / CHO / HOU / LAL / ORL / PHI / WAS

Dwight Howard

Dwight Howard stats, teams and career impact

#179 all-timeCareer averages · 15.7 PPG · 11.8 RPG · 1.3 APGPeak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Position: Center
Final NBA team: Los Angeles Lakers
Height / weight: 6 ft 10 in (208 cm) · 265 lb (120 kg)
Born: December 8, 1985 (40 yrs old)
NBA seasons: 18 seasons · 2004–05 to 2021–22

Career or season view

Career summaryDwight Howard was a center who played 18 NBA seasons, from 2004–05 through 2021–22.

Career PPG: 15.7
Career RPG: 11.8
Career APG: 1.3; #11 in 2010–11; #179 all-time

Peak-weighted regular-season model · playoffs, awards, and championships excluded

Career overview

Why Dwight Howard ranks #179 all time

Dwight Howard ranks #179 all time. Across his three best seasons, his average league finish was #13.7. His full-career value ranks #106, so longevity is a major reason he lands this high.

Peak#11 in 2010–11

Best league finish

Sustained excellence17 ranked seasons

450+ minutes required per season

Career breadth18 seasons

1,242 games · Career Value Rank #106

NBA honors8× All-Star · 8× All-NBA · 5× All-Defense · 3× DPOYContext only; honors are not model inputs.

Head to head

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Suggested matchups from basketball rivalries, comparable roles, and similar careers. Compare career impact, peak seasons, and the numbers behind the result.

Suggested comparisons, not a ranking of search traffic.

Full player detailsTeam history, career shooting and sources

Full team history

Teams: Orlando Magic, Los Angeles Lakers, Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards, and Philadelphia 76ers
Greatest Hawks →Greatest Hornets →Greatest Rockets →Greatest Lakers →Greatest Magic →Greatest 76ers →Greatest Wizards →

Career shooting

NBA regular season

Field goal: 58.7%FG%
Three-point: 21.4%3P%
Free throw: 56.7%FT%

1,242 career games · 39,457 minutes

Sources and updateConventional stats and measurements: Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 13, 2026. hussEyquation ranking data through 2025–26. Life dates: Wikidata; conflicting dates checked against Basketball Reference, accessed Sep 17, 2026.

Traditional box score

Dwight Howard stats by season

Start with scoring and impact, then switch views for shooting or the full advanced picture. Career percentages use total makes and attempts.

Swipe for PPG · RPG · APG · Impact · Team · G · GS · MPG →


2021–22	6.2	5.9	0.6	-0.04	LAL	60	27	16.2	61.2%	53.3%	65.8%	#167	39.8
2020–21	7.0	8.4	0.9	-2.18	PHI	69	6	17.3	58.7%	25.0%	57.6%	#297	-4.4
2019–20	7.5	7.3	0.7	+0.19	LAL	69	2	18.9	72.9%	60.0%	51.4%	#148	60.0
2018–19	12.8	9.2	0.4	-4.29	WAS	9	9	25.6	62.3%	—	60.4%	—	-11.1
2017–18	16.6	12.5	1.3	+0.46	CHO	81	81	30.4	55.5%	14.3%	57.4%	#121	124.5
2016–17	13.5	12.7	1.4	+2.24	ATL	74	74	29.7	63.3%	0.0%	53.3%	#48	189.2
2015–16	13.7	11.8	1.4	+0.55	HOU	71	71	32.1	62.0%	0.0%	48.9%	#112	118.2
2014–15	15.8	10.5	1.2	-0.03	HOU	41	41	29.8	59.3%	50.0%	52.8%	#148	48.4
2013–14	18.3	12.2	1.8	+0.85	HOU	71	71	33.7	59.1%	28.6%	54.7%	#84	136.9
2012–13	17.1	12.4	1.4	+0.70	LAL	76	76	35.8	57.8%	16.7%	49.2%	#97	144.5
2011–12	20.6	14.5	1.9	+4.13	ORL	54	54	38.3	57.3%	0.0%	49.1%	#15	235.4
2010–11	22.9	14.1	1.4	+4.20	ORL	78	78	37.6	59.3%	0.0%	59.6%	#11	345.8
2009–10	18.3	13.2	1.8	+3.31	ORL	82	82	34.7	61.2%	0.0%	59.2%	#23	289.6
2008–09	20.6	13.8	1.4	+3.85	ORL	79	79	35.7	57.2%	0.0%	59.4%	#15	317.5
2007–08	20.7	14.2	1.3	+1.86	ORL	82	82	37.7	59.9%	0.0%	59.0%	#54	232.1
2006–07	17.6	12.3	1.9	+2.12	ORL	82	82	36.9	60.3%	50.0%	58.6%	#50	233.3
2005–06	15.8	12.5	1.5	+0.67	ORL	82	81	36.8	53.1%	0.0%	59.5%	#85	148.5
2004–05	12.0	10.0	0.9	+0.43	ORL	82	82	32.6	52.0%	0.0%	67.1%	#118	127.8
Career	15.7	11.8	1.3	—	ATL/CHO/HOU/LAL/ORL/PHI/WAS	1242	—	31.8	58.7%	21.4%	56.7%	—	—

Source: Basketball Reference regular-season totals, accessed Sep 13, 2026.

Film evidence

Dwight Howard highlights

Watch the selected footage or film analysis, then use the season record and impact data to put what happened on the floor in context.

Career highlights

Dwight Howard's top 35 career plays

Dwight Howard's career highlights adds visual context to the numbers on this page, especially his rim protection, rebounding and powerful lob finishing at his peak. The vetted footage complements the season tables and impact model.

What these measures mean

Era-centered box impact: Estimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average.
Impact Rate Rank: The player's place among qualified players in one season.
Value contribution / Season Value: Completed seasons use a fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. The live season instead uses Season Value, combining that season's impact with workload.
Career Impact Rank: An all-time rank weighted toward the player's best three, five, and ten seasons.

Career Impact Rank#179

23.2 composite · lower is better

Best 5#198

22.4 average league finish

Career Value Rank#106

2,776 total value

Career standing

How Dwight Howard ranks all time

These are league placements, not raw scores. Each season is judged against that season's qualified player pool.

Number-one seasons0

Best in the league

Top-five seasons0

Elite finishes

Top-ten seasons0

Upper-tier finishes

Top-10 Impact Margin0.0

Tie-breaker across top-ten seasons

Career Composite Score23.2

Best 3, Best 5, and Best 10 average league finishes receive 50%, 30%, and 20% window weights. Missing seasons receive a replacement finish just below the player's typical qualified field. Lower is better.

Best 3 effective weight: 74%
Missing-season finish: 352.0
Qualified seasons: 17
All-time rank: #179

Strongest seasons

Every season

Dwight Howard advanced stats by season

Era-centered box impact supports comparisons through time. Impact Rate and its rank compare players only within that season.

More advanced statsAge, minutes, impact, rank, value and data coverage


2021–22	LAL	36	60	971	-0.04	56.8	#167	39.8	49th	Standard
2020–21	PHI	35	69	1,196	-2.18	19.6	#297	-4.4	20th	Broad
2019–20Historical Defense Estimate	LAL	34	69	1,306	+0.19	58.2	#148	60.0	58th	Broad
2018–19Historical Defense Estimate	WAS	33	9	230	-4.29	—	—	-11.1	—	Limited
2017–18Historical Defense Estimate	CHO	32	81	2,463	+0.46	66.8	#121	124.5	79th	Broad
2016–17Historical Defense Estimate	ATL	31	74	2,199	+2.24	87.1	#48	189.2	87th	Broad
2015–16Historical Defense Estimate	HOU	30	71	2,280	+0.55	69.4	#112	118.2	78th	Broad
2014–15Historical Defense Estimate	HOU	29	41	1,223	-0.03	60.3	#148	48.4	56th	Broad
2013–14Historical Defense Estimate	HOU	28	71	2,396	+0.85	75.9	#84	136.9	81st	Broad
2012–13Historical Defense Estimate	LAL	27	76	2,722	+0.70	72.6	#97	144.5	82nd	Broad
2011–12Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	26	54	2,070	+4.13	95.9	#15	235.4	96th	Broad
2010–11Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	25	78	2,935	+4.20	97.2	#11	345.8	98th	Broad
2009–10Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	24	82	2,843	+3.31	93.5	#23	289.6	96th	Broad
2008–09Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	23	79	2,821	+3.85	95.8	#15	317.5	96th	Broad
2007–08Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	22	82	3,088	+1.86	84.0	#54	232.1	90th	Broad
2006–07Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	21	82	3,023	+2.12	85.3	#50	233.3	90th	Broad
2005–06Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	20	82	3,021	+0.67	74.4	#85	148.5	81st	Broad
2004–05Historical Defense Estimate	ORL	19	82	2,670	+0.43	65.9	#118	127.8	80th	Broad

Career movement

Dwight Howard's career impact by season

Peak +4.20 in 2010–11 · 18 seasons · 39,457 minutes

The same historical box-score model is used for every season, making the career shape comparable through time. The vertical scale adapts to this player's range and always includes zero.

Era-centered box impactMinutes

Player-specific impact scaleWorkload

Career comparison

Compare the shape, not the calendar

Align by NBA experience to compare season one with season one, or by age to compare players at the same stage of life.

Compare with a similar careerOpen full comparison →

Dwight HowardMoses Malone

Era-centered box impactEstimated points per 100 possessions above that season's league average · dashed marker means the player did not play

Dwight Howard and Moses Malone era-centered impact values by NBA season number
NBA season	Dwight Howard	Moses Malone
1	0.4	0.9
2	0.7	0.3
3	2.1	2.4
4	1.9	2.0
5	3.9	3.6
6	3.3	5.1
7	4.2	3.2
8	4.1	1.3
9	0.7	1.1
10	0.8	-0.1
11	-0.0	3.9
12	0.5	1.6
13	2.2	1.5
14	0.5	-0.5
15	-4.3	-0.5
16	0.2	0.6
17	-2.2	-6.8
18	-0.0	-1.8
19	Did not play	-6.9

NBA season number

Similar career arcs

Players with careers similar to Dwight Howard

The career-similarity score compares era-centered box impact, peak, prime, workload, career length, position, and experience-aligned trajectory. It describes career shape, not playing style, equal ability, or probability.

C · All-Time Career #120

Moses Malone

career similarity score

94/100 closest-season score · 2010–11 ↔ 1980–81 PF · All-Time Career #197

Horace Grant

career similarity score

92/100 closest-season score · 2010–11 ↔ 1991–92 C · All-Time Career #240

Dikembe Mutombo

career similarity score

92/100 closest-season score · 2010–11 ↔ 1993–94

How to read this page

Impact Rate shows how strong a player was compared with everyone else that season. Season Value adds how much he played; completed player-profile rows instead show each season's fixed-baseline contribution to Career Value. Career Impact Rank rewards a high peak, a long prime, and repeated seasons near the top. Older seasons use clearly labeled estimates where the NBA did not record today's full set of statistics. Read how every ranking works →