Dwight Howard, the No. 1 draft pick for Orlando in 2004, played eight seasons with the Magic and remains their all-time leader in points, rebounds and blocked shots.
The Orlando Magic were established in 1989. During the history of their franchise, only one player has made All-Defensive First Team. That player was Dwight Howard, who accomplished the feat four times. Let’s highlight the stats that helped him earn the honors.
Dwight Howard – 4 Times (2009, 2010, 2011, 2012)
The Magic selected Howard with the first pick in the 2004 Draft. He started all 82 games during his rookie season, averaging 12.0 points, 10.0 rebounds and 1.7 blocks. That helped him finish third in the Rookie of the Year voting. Howard would go on to play all 82 games in each of his first four seasons in the league.
Howard averaged 36 minutes while appearing in 79 games during the 2008-09 season. He led the NBA in both rebounds (13.8) and blocks (2.9) per game. He was also an excellent offensive force, averaging 20.6 points and shooting 57.2% from the field. In addition to being named All-Defensive First Team for the first time in his career, Howard was also named the Defensive Player of the Year.
In 2009-10, Howard led the NBA in both rebounds and blocks again, while also having the highest field goal percentage. He was named All-Defensive First Team and won the Defensive Player of the Year award again. For the second straight season, he also came in fourth in MVP voting.
The 2010-11 season was arguably the best of Howard’s career. He finished with averages of 22.9 points, 14.1 rebounds, 1.4 steals and 2.4 blocks. That resulted in him being named All-Defensive First Team, winning his third straight Defensive Player of the Year award and finishing second in MVP voting.
Howard’s streak of three straight Defensive Player of the Year awards came to an end in 2011-12. He finished third in the voting with his averages of 20.6 points, 14.5 rebounds, 1.5 steals and 2.1 blocks. He was named All-Defensive First Team for the fourth straight season. That would end up being his final season as a member of the Magic.
Over 621 career regular season games with the Magic, Howard averaged 18.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, 1.0 steals and 2.2 blocks. In the playoffs, he averaged 19.9 points, 14.4 rebounds and 2.8 blocks over 57 games. He did not win a championship with the team, but he did eventually win a title while playing for the Lakers.
For his entire career, Howard made eight All-Star teams, was named All-Defensive First Team four times, All Defensive Second Team one time and won three Defensive Player of the Year awards. He also led the league in rebounds per game five times and blocks twice. He was elected into the Hall of Fame in 2025.
