As of now, the status of Washington Wizards center Dwight Howard for the team’s first regular-season game seems unclear at best.
Howard has been sidelined throughout the preseason with pain in his lower back, an injury that has forced the big man to be a spectator in each of the Wizards’ practice and exhibition games to date. The Wizards beat the New York Knicks on the road last night, 110-98, but Howard was flown back to D.C. before the game for a pain-relieving injection in his back.
Candace Buckner of The Washington Post reports Howard will stay in D.C. to rest and recover while the Wizards move on to visit the Detroit Pistons on Wednesday night. Buckner reports Howard woke up Sunday feeling soreness in his back after participating in a light workout with Washington’s coaches.
“He’s going to get a pain-relieving injection and hopefully early next week, he’ll be back on the court and be ready to play,” Wizards coach Scott Brooks said. “I don’t know what that means for the first game, but we’re just gonna take it day by day.”
The Wizards close out their preseason slate on Friday with a home game against the Guangzhou Long-Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association. After that, the Wizards have five days off before they host the Miami Heat in their season opener on Sept. 18. Buckner reports that before last night’s game in New York Brooks was asked if “it was safe to say” Howard won’t play in the opener if he missed the preseason slate.
Brooks’ response? “Yeah, that’s safe.”
Last season, Howard ranked third in the NBA in rebounds per game (12.5), fourth in double-doubles (53), ninth in blocks (1.6) and 11th in field-goal percentage (55.5 percent). Howard’s most impressive game of the 2017-18 season came on March 21, when he finished with 32 points and a career-high 30 rebounds in a comeback win against the Nets.
Howard was traded by the Hornets to the Nets in the offseason. Brooklyn waived him shortly thereafter, allowing Howard to sign with the Wizards.
After spending the first eight seasons of his career with the Orlando Magic, Howard has played for the Los Angeles Lakers (2012-13), the Houston Rockets (2013-16), the Atlanta Hawks (2016-17) and the Hornets (2017-18) since then.
