Dwight Howard has message for Giannis Antetokounmpo

Howard’s post lacked the appropriate punctuation, but he was clearly telling Antetokounmpo to listen to someone who has been in a similar situation.

Howard was drafted No. 1 overall by the Orlando Magic in 2004 and began his career playing eight seasons with the team. The Magic did not make the playoffs in Howard’s first two seasons, but then they made it six straight years, including an NBA Finals appearance in 2008-2009. Howard got coach Stan Van Gundy pushed out, and then it wasn’t much longer thereafter that Howard had pushed his way out of Orlando.

Howard wound up with the Lakers, but that was a disaster. Then he moved to Houston for a few seasons before bouncing around to several different teams over the ensuing years. Howard’s best work came during his time with the Magic, and he never recaptured that excellence after leaving.

Antetokounmpo may be dissatisfied with the Bucks, but Howard knows the grass isn’t always greener on the other side.

The Bucks won the NBA championship in 2021 but have only made it past the first round of the playoffs once since then. They traded away Jrue Holiday and added Damian Lillard, but that has not worked out so far. They fired Mike Budenholzer and are rolling with Doc Rivers as their head coach.

Howard’s advice to Giannis: remain patient and don’t leave Milwaukee.