It Turns Out Dwight Howard Hadn’t Retired Until Today

Last September, Dwight Howard was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, cementing him as one of the greatest centers in NBA history. And on Thursday, while basketball fans are tuned into college conference tournaments and getting ready for some fun Nuggets vs. Spurs and Celtics vs. Thunder matchups, Howard officially retired.

Wait, what?

Howard, who last played in the NBA for the Lakers during the 2021–22 season before a season with the Taoyuan Leopards in Taiwan’s T1 League, evidently hadn’t officially made a retirement decision—until now.

“Woke up today on the 12th of this month and I figured it’s time to move on from Superman! Im no super human… I cry ! I struggle! I feel like everyone else. Through the lies, the media and the hate I still show love and Smile Through The Storm,” Howard wrote, opening a lengthy retirement post to social media, in which he clarified that his absence from the game for three years wasn’t his choice.

“But now Im taking off the cape and retiring from all basketball to pour into my family and give back to communities worldwide. I know some of you might think I thought he already ‘retired’ but I didn’t… the game retired me! I still had more left to give ! Yeah I did play professionally for 20 years and Im grateful to be able to say that but I can’t lie seeing these other players still going at it at age 40 inspired me to want to keep trying but now I believe my duty will be to pass it down to the next generation.

“So Thank you to all my fans and supporters throughout this journey I love and appreciate yall dearly because without yall it would be no me! “

Woke up today on the 12th of this month and I figured it’s time to move on from Superman! Im no super human… I cry ! I struggle! I feel like everyone else. Through the lies, the media and the hate I still show love and Smile Through The Storm.

But now Im taking off the cape and… pic.twitter.com/SyZQAcAeLq
— Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) March 12, 2026

After also thanking “the Naysayers, the haters, the snakes, and people that came into my life to try to destroy me” for motivation, Howard vowed to conduct a tour of various cities on the 12th of every month—a nod to his jersey number for much of his career—in which he will “visit cities all over the world and do acts of kindness for random to people.” That will come in lieu of the retirement tour that he never had.

A look back at Dwight Howard’s Hall of Fame NBA career

The No. 1 pick by the Magic in the 2004 NBA draft, Howard quickly became one of the NBA’s most dominant big men. He made his first of eight consecutive All-Star Games in 2007, and his first of five straight All-NBA First-Team selections a year later.

Howard’s biggest impact came on the defensive end. With Orlando, he won three consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards from 2009 to ‘11, led the league in blocks twice (‘09, ‘10) and was the NBA’s top rebounder five times (2008–10, ‘12, ‘13). Howard averaged a double-double in each of his first 14 seasons.

While Howard did not win his first NBA championship until 2020, when he was a role player for the Lakers in the COVID-19 bubble postseason, he led the Magic to the 2009 NBA Finals as the team’s top player. His best individual season came in 2010–11, in which he averaged a career-high 22.9 points along with 14.1 rebounds and 2.4 blocks per game, Howard finished second to Derrick Rose for the MVP award.

Howard is also an Olympic gold medalist, winning as part of the 2008 USA “Redeem Team” at the Beijing Games. He averaged 10.9 points and 5.8 rebounds in just 16.3 minutes per game for the star-studded roster.

Howard played for eight different franchises during his basketball career (including his year abroad)

His career clearly peaked with his first team, Orlando, which drafted him and for which he played from 2004 to ‘12. He was an All-Star in his first two seasons after leaving the Magic—with the Lakers and Rockets—and while he pretty quickly went from superstar to role player, he carved out a solid role for another eight years after his final All-Star nod.

Seasons	Franchise
2004 to ‘12	Orlando Magic
2012–13	Los Angeles Lakers
2013 to ‘16	Houston Rockets
2016–17	Atlanta Hawks
2017–18	Charlotte Hornets
2018–19	Washington Wizards
2019–20	Los Angeles Lakers
2020–21	Philadelphia 76ers
2021–22	Los Angeles Lakers
2022–23	Taoyuan Leopards (T1 League)

At multiple points of his announcement, Howard took pride in his famous smile, that which persisted throughout the ups and downs of his career. In a graphic celebrating many of his career achievements and milestones, he ended with, “the only player in NBA history to dominate the game while smiling every play.”

That may require a citation, but good luck telling Howard that he’s wrong on that stat.

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