Getty Philadelphia 76ers center Dwight Howard during a game against the Los Angeles Lakers in January.
This summer’s edition of NBA free agency officially gets underway at 6 p.m. ET on Monday, when teams can begin negotiating with free agents. It will still be another four days until any moves can be put into action, as teams can begin signing those players starting at 12:01 p.m. ET on Friday.
According to the Los Angeles Times, Philadelphia 76ers unrestricted free agent Dwight Howard may be seeking a move out of the northeast before next season, and is thinking about heading to a very familiar place.
The latest Sixers news straight to your inbox! Join the Heavy on Sixers newsletter here!
Andrew Greif, Broderick Turner, and Dan Woike – all NBA reporters for the Los Angeles Times – discussed what they’ve been hearing in regards to the Lakers’ and Clippers’ off-season plans over the weekend and Turner in particular brought up Howard’s name.
One Last Lakers Hurrah for Howard?
GettyFormer Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard during Game Five of the 2020 NBA Finals against the Miami Heat.
Howard, who will be 36 in December, just finished his first season with Philadelphia as the primary backup to MVP candidate Joel Embiid. He played for the Lakers during the 2012-2013 season – averaging 17.1 points, 2.4 blocks and a league-leading 12.4 rebounds per game as an All-Star – and returned to the west coast as a bench player for the first time in his career prior to joining the Sixers and won an NBA title.
“Guess who might be back for a third time? Yup, Dwight Howard is ready to return and play center,” Turner said.
“… Even though Marc Gasol is under contract, I’m curious where he fits in with the team’s plans. The situation with Andre Drummond last season was less than ideal, and while Gasol’s reinsertion into the starting lineup late in the playoffs might be some vindication for the proud vet, the Lakers have to wonder if he wants to be back after it seemed like the team didn’t want him,” Woike added. “If Gasol is out, the Lakers will need to find a starting center. And innovation could lose out to familiarity. In addition to Howard, I think JaVale McGee could be another option too.”
Since spending the first eight seasons of his future Hall-of-Fame career with the Orlando Magic, Howard has become the definition of an NBA journeyman. Philadelphia became the seventh team the big man has played for and stunningly, the fifth in the past five years.
The Lakers are the only franchise that Howard has played for twice though.
Howard Had an up-and-Down Season With the Sixers
GettyPhiladelphia 76ers center Dwight Howard prior to Game Six of the Eastern Conference Semifinals against the Atlanta Hawks.
Howard signed a one-year deal with the Sixers in November last year, just one month before the 2020-2021 season began. He earned the veteran’s minimum $2.56 million and played in 69 of the team’s 72 games, starting six of them.
Though he averaged a career-low 7.0 points per game, that was due in large part to averaging a career-low 17.3 minutes per contest as well, and despite the low scoring numbers, his field goal percentage of 58.7% and free throw percentage of 57.6% were just above his career averages. The eight-time All-Star also posted a terrific 8.4 rebounds per game – including 2.8 on the offensive end – and 0.9 blocks per contest.
The center is one of four Sixers unrestricted free agents, joining Danny Green, Furkan Korkmaz, and Mike Scott.
READ NEXT: This Sixers NBA Draft Pick Has a Wild Backstory Involving Fried Chicken