Dwight Howard’s Key To Being A Successful Defender
Here’s the one thing Dwight Howard says you need to work on to be a good defensive player in basketball.
Dwight Howard is one of the most skilled defensive players in NBA history.
His presence put fear in his opponents and only the brave dared to attack the rim when he was around.
Sometimes, a slasher would get the better of him and the crowd would holler.
But the majority of the time, he denied them at the apex of their shot and the crowd would holler louder (for a lack of a better term, I guess?).
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Now, back to the story…
For instance, there was this one play in 2010 when Dwyane Wade, a fantastic slasher, tried to drive on Howard.
Wade had been successful with Eurosteps for years and thought he’d give it a try against Howard.
But Howard simply stepped over to help his man. He turned, elevated up and slapped the ball off of the backboard.
Howard did this for years and as a result, was deemed the Defensive Player of the Year 3 times in a row and was selected for the All-Defensive team 5 times.
He was also a 5-time rebounding leader and a 2-time blocks leader.
But what made Howard such a good defender? And how was he able to do it consistently, game-in and game-out, for many years?
Well, the answer isn’t going to be what you think.
On The Thanalysis Show, Howard told Thanasis Antetokounmpo that his superior defense was rooted in his conditioning and mindset.
“Defense is all about, one, conditioning, and mindset.”
Howard went on to describe how he developed these attributes and how they benefited him.
“When I played, in my prime, I never got tired. My workout regime was very, very tough, in order for me to not get tired in games. I was able to play. If I had to play 48 minutes, I could play without getting tired. So, that is key. That is key -conditioning. Conditioning brings so much confidence and swag to your game.
“Why do you think I smile so much? Because I’m like, ‘This feels so good. Like, I’m in shape-shape! I’m able to play how I wanna play the whole game and nobody can stop it.”
In his 18-year career, Howard averaged 1.8 blocks, 0.9 steals and 11.8 rebounds.
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