Saturday, Sept. 6, will be a big day for former Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard, as he will be officially inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

While he had a stellar career, the pundits didn’t seem to unanimously agree on whether he truly deserved to make the cut. But the three-time Defensive Player of the Year is going in, and it will be the ultimate affirmation of a career that had plenty of ups and downs.

Advertisement

In the first episode of the new season of “Scoop B Selects,” Howard told Brandon “Scoop B” Robinson what it means to receive this tremendous honor.

“I’m just thankful that I’ve put myself in a position to be a Hall of Famer, you know?” Howard said. “My work ethic, my discipline, my sacrifice, consistency and my faith has got me to the Hall of Fame and it’s an amazing honor to hear everywhere I go that people call me a Hall of Famer.”

The center started his career with the Orlando Magic after he was the No. 1 pick in the 2004 NBA Draft straight out of high school. In 2012, he was traded to the Lakers, and although it appeared they had built a superteam with him, Steve Nash, Kobe Bryant and Pau Gasol joining forces, they suffered through a massively injury-riddled season.

Howard left the team in the summer of 2013, amidst lots of controversy and a rumored rift with Bryant. With his reputation in shambles, he returned to the Purple and Gold in 2019 and embraced a reduced role off the bench as they won the NBA championship that season.

“I think it was just the cherry on top, you know?” he said of that 2020 world title.

Howard ended his 18-year NBA career with averages of 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks a game. While he was never a truly dominant player due to his relative lack of offensive skills, he led the league in rebounding five times and in blocked shots twice. In his prime, he was a monster defensively and on the boards, which resulted in him making the All-Star team eight times.

Advertisement

This article originally appeared on LeBron Wire: Former Laker Dwight Howard on getting inducted into Hall of Fame