After Charles Barkley questioned Dwight Howard’s mental toughness to be a franchise-caliber player, former Laker and seven-time champion Robert Horry discussed numerous topics including Dwight Howard in an interview with HoopsHype.
During his 16-year career, Horry has played with Hakeem Olajuwon (Houston Rockets) and Shaquille O’Neal (Los Angeles Lakers), who are considered two of the best centers in NBA history. In a 2011 interview with SLAM Magazine, he shared his thoughts on the best player he’s played with:
The best player as far as straight out talent was Hakeem Olajuwon. He was just very talented for a guy his size.
When asked about Dwight Howard, Horry decided to measure the current Lakers center against the two-time champion, Olajuwon (per HoopsHype):
Dwight would have no chance [against Olajuwon]. Howard is a good player, but his offensive skills are limited. He only has the Georgetown hook, a couple of spins in the baseline… Dwight is a great player, but there are things certain players can and can’t do, and Hakeem could do a lot.
Throughout his career, Howard has been criticized for his lack of post moves for a big man, and Horry is the latest to comment on Howard’s offensive deficiencies. In 2010, Howard actually trained with Hakeem in an effort to improve his post moves and plans to train with him again this off-season.
Howard’s defensive abilities are unmatched as a three-time Defensive Player of the Year, but in order for him to be considered one of the greatest centers of all-time, he will need to improve his offensive skills. Once Howard shows that he is capable of having a reliable post game to go along with his defensive abilities, there’s no question that he is a franchise-caliber player.
Coming off season-ending back surgery in April 2012, Dwight Howard returned much earlier than expected and averaged 17.1 points, 12.4 rebounds, and 2.4 blocks in his first season with the Lakers.
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