Dwight Howard Compares Himself to Knicks Legend

D12 believe he has the number of the New York Knicks’ iconic No. 33.

Howard took to X to advocate for his NBA legacy earlier this weekend: the claims began with a post from Fox Sports’ Nick Wright on X (one where he claimed that Kevin Garnett “the Kobe (Bryant) to Tim (Duncan’s)” Michael Jordan in the sense that viewers were “scared” to say Bryant and Garnett were respectively better than their legendary contemporaries Jordan and Duncan.

Howard inserting himself into the conversation by demanding his NBA career get equal recognition to that of Patrick Ewing, the legendary big man who spent most of his 17-year tenure with the Knicks.

“Nick, I might be the Kobe to Pat Ewing’s MJ,” Howard claimed. “People scared to say I was better.”

Disregarding the differing styles of play in their respective eras, Ewing and Howard did embark on remarkably similar careers: the two were hailed as saviors in the interior by the Knicks and Orlando Magic respectively and joined the Association as the No. 1 pick in their ensuing drafts. Both served the franchises faces in Manhattan and Central Florida, racking up historic rebounding and defensive ledgers.

The two’s stats are mostly even, though Ewing holds a notable edge in points per game at 21.0 to 15.7, as well as averaging two blocks in a career that, ironically enough, ended in Orlando two years before Howard made his professional debut.

Howard, however, does have three Defensive Player of the Year honors and eventually captured an elusive championship in 2020 as a reserve with the Los Angeles Lakers. Ewing made two editions of the NBA Finals (1994, 1999) but did not appear in the latter due to injury.

Ultimately, there’s perhaps no way to truly determine who holds the interior supremacy, though there’s no doubt each center will have an expansive legion of supporters.

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