From six All-Star selections and slam dunk champion to an NBA Finals run, Dwight Howard left his imprint on the Orlando Magic. Howard, 39, spent eight of his 18 NBA seasons with the Magic. Appearing recently on The Lou Young Show, Howard said the franchise should retire his jersey because his impact put Orlando on the map.
"I feel as though my time in Orlando, with what I've done in Orlando, for sure a jersey," Howard said. "Only because we put Orlando really on the map. Like Orlando was different, we got a new arena out of that place."
"We had Orlando rocking, everybody came to those games," Howard added.
Howard listed various celebrities who would attend, from Michael Jackson and his family to pro wrestlers and singers.
"Everybody was coming to the Magic games, and before that, it wasn't happening," Howard said.
Howard seems to forget the Shaquille O'Neal and Penny Hardaway years in the mid-1990s. The duo led the Magic to the Finals in 1995 and lost to the Michael Jordan-led Chicago Bulls the following year.
Howard's time in Orlando ended in drama and controversy, leading to a rough breakup between the big man and the organization. Howard blames the media for twisting things he would say.
"The media did a good job of taking things that I said, or how I tried to say or put things, and try to twist me or my teammates or the fans against me cause of me wanting to leave Orlando," Howard said. "That's what kind of turned everybody sour, is me leaving Orlando, then me going to LA."
Howard also said people didn't understand what he was going through after dealing with back surgery due to a herniated disc.
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