Dwight Howard gets emotional after getting inducted into the Orlando Magic Hall of Fame.
After Shaquille O’Neal’s departure to the Los Angeles Lakers in 1996, the Orlando Magic went from one of the top contenders in the NBA to a mediocre team at best.
While they had a few stars don their jerseys in the post-Shaq era, none came close to bringing them an NBA Championship like Dwight Howard.
The No. 1 overall pick in the 2004 NBA Draft played some of the best basketball of his career during his eight-year stint with the Magic.
Getting inducted into the Basketball Hall of Famer isn’t something that every NBA star experiences. Many believe that Howard has a phenomenal resume that will earn him that honor in the future.
But before that, the Magic recently won fans’ hearts by inducting Howard into the franchise’s Hall of Fame for his contributions. After the event, an emotional Howard penned a beautiful message to the organization on X.
“Those tears today were tears of JOY. Tears for that 10-year-old who said he was going to be the #1 pick in the NBA draft!
“Tears for the 18-year-old kid that was handed the keys to a franchise and a city. Tears for the ups & downs on this long journey I had in the NBA.
“Everything comes full circle and I want to thank the Magic again for inducting me into the Orlando Magic HOF.”
There is no doubt that Howard means a lot to the Magic. After all, the 2020 NBA champion was responsible for 5 out of the team’s total 17 playoff appearances.
On top of that, he also led them to the 2009 NBA Finals after defeating LeBron James’ Cleveland Cavaliers, albeit failing to repeat the same level of success against Kobe Bryant’s Los Angeles Lakers.
Howard may have had an ugly fallout with the team back in 2012, but the Orlando Magic community still loves the 3x NBA Defensive Player of the Year.
That’s obvious from how they reacted to Howard’s emotional message about getting inducted into the Magic Hall of Fame.
“We love you forever, 12! Welcome home!”
“We will always love you, Dwight. As much as it hurt when you left, we have always missed you and wished you well.”
“It was an amazing time while it lasted! Appreciate the competition, fun, laughter, and drama.”
“Deserved. Greatest player in Magic History.”
“Congrats Dwight! Jersey needs to be retired in the rafters next! Orlando Loves You!”
Howard averaged 18.4 points, 13.0 rebounds, 1.5 assists, and 2.2 blocks per game over 621 matchups as a member of the Magic.
On top of that, the former center earned a plethora of accolades during that stretch. As many fans have requested, the Magic will likely retire Howard’s No. 12 jersey in the future.
