Denton: Howard All-Star Bound Again
By John Denton
January 21, 2010
Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Magic and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.
ORLANDO – Orlando Magic superstar center Dwight Howard climbed to third overall in the voting for the NBA All-Star Game and earned his third consecutive start for the Eastern Conference.
Howard, the Magic’s leader in scoring (17.3), rebounding (13), blocked shots (2.43) and steals (1.12), received 2,360,096 to easily outdistance Cleveland’s Shaquille O’Neal (856,056) in the voting at center in the East.
Howard’s total trailed only LeBron James (2,549,693 votes) and Kobe Bryant (2,456,224 votes). Howard set the all-time NBA record for all-star votes last season with 3.1 million.
``I’m happy to be able to represent my team in the all-star game,’’ Howard said. ``It’s an honor and I’m just going to keep working to get better. I’m striving to be the best player that I can be and one of the best to ever play. Playing in the All-Star Game and being around those other all-stars, it’s just a great honor.’’
Miami’s Dwyane Wade, Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson and Boston’s Kevin Garnett join Howard and James as starters for the Eastern Conference. Phoenix’s Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire, Denver’s Carmelo Anthony and San Antonio’s Tim Duncan join Bryant as starters for the West.
The 59th NBA All-Star Game will be played on Feb. 14 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. A crowd of more than 80,000 is expected to attend the game, the largest crowd ever to see a live basketball game.
Orlando guard Vince Carter finished third in the voting along East guards with 1,048,977 votes. Carter could still be named as a reserve. The reserves will be voted on by coaches and will be announced on Jan. 28.
Howard, who won the 2008 Slam Dunk contest and finished second in 2009, has said that he will skip the event this time around. He does plan to sit courtside for the event and said he’ll have no second thoughts about passing on dunking in the contest.
``I want to enjoy it. I think it’s great to have other guys to shine,’’ he said. ``It was a great opportunity for me. I know people think we should get in it every year and a lot of all-stars should do it, but there are a lot of guys who could be in the dunk contest, so it’s a good way for them to get their names out there.’’
On his way to his fourth consecutive all-star game and his third as a starter, Howard said the biggest joy of the weekend is hanging around the other all-star players and picking up tips from them. But he also sees the event as a way to give back to the millions of fans who have supported him.
``It’s not always how many points you score or how many dunks or rebounds that you get; it’s how you present yourself off the court and interact with the fans,’’ he said. ``I take heart in interacting with the fans and going the extra mile sometimes with them.
``It’s a blessing and I just thank God for all the fans that I have supporting me,’’ Howard continued. ``The thing for me is giving back and always showing fans just how much I care.’’
John Denton writes for Orlandomagic.com. His Magic ``Behind the Scenes’’ segment can be heard each week on ESPN 1080 AM. Submit questions to John for his ``Ask J.D.’’ mailbag feature that will appear every Friday at AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
By John DentonJanuary 21, 2010
Note: The contents of this page have not been reviewed or endorsed by the Orlando Magic. All opinions expressed by John Denton are solely his own and do not reflect the opinions of the Orlando Magic or their Basketball Operations staff, partners or sponsors. His sources are not known to the Magic and he has no special access to information beyond the access and privileges that go along with being an NBA accredited member of the media.
ORLANDO – Orlando Magic superstar center Dwight Howard climbed to third overall in the voting for the NBA All-Star Game and earned his third consecutive start for the Eastern Conference.
Howard, the Magic’s leader in scoring (17.3), rebounding (13), blocked shots (2.43) and steals (1.12), received 2,360,096 to easily outdistance Cleveland’s Shaquille O’Neal (856,056) in the voting at center in the East.
Howard’s total trailed only LeBron James (2,549,693 votes) and Kobe Bryant (2,456,224 votes). Howard set the all-time NBA record for all-star votes last season with 3.1 million.
``I’m happy to be able to represent my team in the all-star game,’’ Howard said. ``It’s an honor and I’m just going to keep working to get better. I’m striving to be the best player that I can be and one of the best to ever play. Playing in the All-Star Game and being around those other all-stars, it’s just a great honor.’’
Miami’s Dwyane Wade, Philadelphia’s Allen Iverson and Boston’s Kevin Garnett join Howard and James as starters for the Eastern Conference. Phoenix’s Steve Nash and Amare Stoudemire, Denver’s Carmelo Anthony and San Antonio’s Tim Duncan join Bryant as starters for the West.
The 59th NBA All-Star Game will be played on Feb. 14 at Cowboys Stadium in Arlington, Texas. A crowd of more than 80,000 is expected to attend the game, the largest crowd ever to see a live basketball game.
Orlando guard Vince Carter finished third in the voting along East guards with 1,048,977 votes. Carter could still be named as a reserve. The reserves will be voted on by coaches and will be announced on Jan. 28.
Howard, who won the 2008 Slam Dunk contest and finished second in 2009, has said that he will skip the event this time around. He does plan to sit courtside for the event and said he’ll have no second thoughts about passing on dunking in the contest.
``I want to enjoy it. I think it’s great to have other guys to shine,’’ he said. ``It was a great opportunity for me. I know people think we should get in it every year and a lot of all-stars should do it, but there are a lot of guys who could be in the dunk contest, so it’s a good way for them to get their names out there.’’
On his way to his fourth consecutive all-star game and his third as a starter, Howard said the biggest joy of the weekend is hanging around the other all-star players and picking up tips from them. But he also sees the event as a way to give back to the millions of fans who have supported him.
``It’s not always how many points you score or how many dunks or rebounds that you get; it’s how you present yourself off the court and interact with the fans,’’ he said. ``I take heart in interacting with the fans and going the extra mile sometimes with them.
``It’s a blessing and I just thank God for all the fans that I have supporting me,’’ Howard continued. ``The thing for me is giving back and always showing fans just how much I care.’’
John Denton writes for Orlandomagic.com. His Magic ``Behind the Scenes’’ segment can be heard each week on ESPN 1080 AM. Submit questions to John for his ``Ask J.D.’’ mailbag feature that will appear every Friday at AskJD@orlandomagic.com.
