Los Angeles Lakers centre Dwight Howard is reportedly set to return to the NBA’s Dunk Contest at All-Star Weekend in Chicago this February, according to The Athletic‘s Shams Charania.
From 2007–09, Howard competed in the contest, winning in 2008 and performing his now famous “Superman Dunk,” in which he donned a cape embroidered with the comic book character’s logo and threw a basketball into the hoop from a distance, without actually grabbing onto or touching the rim.
The NBA has long had difficulty getting superstar players to participate in the Dunk Contest, and has gone through various format changes to the event in order to keep it fresh. Howard, who was only 23 years of age in his last attempt at the competition, is arguably the most recent true superstar to take part in the contest (Blake Griffin also participated in 2011).
Certainly older now and not the same player he was nearly 11 years ago, Howard’s name still brings a level of intrigue due to the fact that he is an eight-time All-Star, three-time Defensive Player of the Year and eight-time All-NBA team member.
After multiple seasons of bouncing around the league, Howard appears to have located a home with the red-hot Lakers, who have found use for his talents as a potent rebounder, rim protector and lob threat off the bench.
Howard is averaging 7.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 1.4 blocks on 73.8 per cent shooting this season in 19.5 minutes.
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