Dwight Howard Biography Details, Age, Net Worth, and Basketball Career

Dwight David Howard is an American basketball player who plays center for the Los Angeles Lakers of the National Basketball Association. Howard is known for his combination of size and athleticism, which has made him one of the most feared players in the league around the basket on both the offensive and defensive ends of the floor.

Dwight Howard Basketball Career

NBA Career

Rather than go to college, Howard elected to go pro after high school and was drafted with the first overall pick of the 2004 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic. In his rookie season, Howard became the youngest player to ever average double-doubles for a regular season and finished third in Rookie of the Year voting as a result. Howard also participated in that year’s Rookie Challenge game.

Howard continued to improve from there, adding muscle and learning under Magic assistant Brian Hill to be a more effective post player. Thanks to those improvements, the Magic made the playoffs in Howard’s third season, while Howard was named an Eastern Conference All-Star Game participant. He was named to the All-NBA Third Team that season. The United States also utilized Howard’s skills, adding him to the 2008 team that won gold in the Beijing Olympics. 

The remainder of Howard’s Magic career only got better, as Howard’s scoring and rebounding anchored a Magic team that managed to make the NBA Finals in 2009. He racked up individual awards in his final four seasons with the team and became a superstar thanks to his performances as Superman in the NBA Slam Dunk Contest. But, after requesting a trade to the Brooklyn Nets, Howard was traded to the Los Angeles Lakers in 2012.

Los Angeles, despite all of the hype surrounding the combination of Howard, Steve Nash, and Kobe Bryant, was a huge bust as a basketball team with Howard taking much of the blame for that. From there, Howard became something of a journeyman in the league, spending short periods of time with the Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets and Washington Wizards. However, Howard has once again found a home with the Lakers, where he serves a key role off the bench as a rim protector as he looks to help the Lakers defeat teams like the Los Angeles Clippers and Portland Trail Blazers for the Western Conference title.

Dwight Howard Net Worth, Salary, Endorsements & Career Earnings

Howard signed a one year, league-minimum deal with the Los Angeles Lakers in 2019. Over the course of his career, Howard has racked up over $238 million in earnings from his NBA contracts alone.

He has an estimated net worth of $240 million, thanks in large part to an 11-year run where his salary was over $13 million dollars per year in the NBA. Howard has also enjoyed lucrative endorsement deals throughout his career, including deals with Adidas and McDonald’s that paid him a reported eight figures when he was in his prime.

Dwight Howard Personal Life

Dwight Howard was born in Atlanta, Georgia to Dwight Howard Sr. and Sheryl Howard. Dwight Sr. served as the athletic director of the high school Dwight Jr. attended, while Sheryl Howard was a member of the first women’s basketball team at Morris Brown College.

He has one brother and one sister, and has five children. One of Howard’s children, Braylon, was had with Royce Reed of Basketball Wives fame.

Awards & Achievements

Dwight Howard Quotes

• On relationships with teammates: “You don’t have to be best friends as basketball players but I do believe in chemistry.”
• On trusting others: “The hardest thing to do is to trust people.”
• On the adjustment from high school to the NBA: “You go from high school to the NBA, and you’re thrown in the fire.”

Dwight Howard Fun Facts

• Howard once set an NBA record with 39 free throw attempts in a game against the Golden State Warriors.
• Howard is very involved in charity work, with his family setting up the Dwight D. Howard Foundation when he was a rookie.
• Howard is an animal lover and owns over a dozen snakes.
• He also has a farm, where he keeps cows and other livestock.
• Howard has appeared on multiple television programs, including Extreme Makeover: Home Edition and Tanked.