Dwight Howard to be inducted into Magic Hall of Fame

Dwight Howard will become the 13th inductee into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame, the team announced Thursday.

Howard will be inducted on Monday, March 24, in Kia Center, near the Orlando Magic Fan Experience. He will be honored that night during Orlando’s game against the L.A. Lakers and the induction ceremony. 

“Dwight Howard left an undeniable imprint on the history of the Orlando Magic,” said the team’s CEO, Alex Martins. “From being the first overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft to our trip to the 2009 NBA Finals, Dwight’s work helped us achieve great success during his eight seasons in a Magic uniform, both on the court and in the community. We are looking forward to inducting Dwight into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame.”

Originally selected with the first overall pick of the 2004 NBA Draft by Orlando, Howard played eight seasons with the Magic from 2004-12. He appeared in 621 regular season games (620 starts) with Orlando, averaging 18.4 ppg., 13.0 rpg., 1.5 apg., 2.16 blkpg. and 1.01 stlpg. in 36.2 minpg., while shooting .577 (4,034-6,988) from the floor.

He helped the Magic reach the 2009 NBA Finals and the Eastern Conference Finals in 2010.

During his tenure with the Magic, Howard was named to the All-NBA First Team in five consecutive seasons from 2007-12, the most of any player in Orlando history, and was All-NBA Third Team once (2006-07). In 2009-10, he became the first player in franchise history to be named to the All-NBA First Team unanimously. Howard became the first player in NBA history to win the league’s Defensive Player of the Year award in three straight seasons from 2008-11. He earned NBA All-Defensive First Team honors four consecutive times (2008-12) and was All-Defensive Second Team once (2007-08).

In addition, Howard was named an NBA All-Star six consecutive times from 2007-12. 

He stands as the Orlando Magic’s all-time leader in points scored (11,435), rebounds (8,072), blocked shots (1,344), free throws made (3,366), free throws attempted (5,727) and minutes played (22,471). Entering this season, he also ranks among the franchise’s all-time leaders in games played (third, 621), field goals made (third, 4,034), steals (fourth, 626), and field goals attempted (fourth, 6,988).

Howard is a 2025 Finalist for the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame.

 

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