<div class='quotetop'>QUOTE </div><div class='quotemain'></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">LOS ANGELES - No play defines the power and tremendous force with which Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard has bullied the competition than the full-extension, two-handed, thunderous dunk.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">The in-your-face power dunk has become Howard's signature move, the same way Michael Jordan was known for wagging his tongue on fade-away jumpers and Magic Johnson fashioned the no-look pass. Howard is seemingly a nightly staple, what with the way he has dunked on the heads of foes all season long.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">The raw numbers are absolutely stunning. Howard has recorded an NBA-high 81 dunks this season, more than 25 of the 30 teams in the NBA. To put Howard's total in further perspective, Andrew Bynum -- Howard's opposite tonight when the Magic and Lakers play in Los Angeles -- is second in the league in dunks with 34.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">"In order to be dominant, you have to go out and dominate other players," said the 6-foot-11, 268-pound Howard, who had eight dunks in Orlando's 110-106 loss Friday in Phoenix. "The dunk is one of my weapons. It's a higher-percentage shot and it gets me going.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">"(Assistant coach) Patrick (Ewing) gets on me about shooting more hook shots, but if I can get in there and dunk the ball on somebody I'm going to take it every time."</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Howard's relentless motor and jumping-jack legs have allowed him to make even some of the NBA's best centers look downright helpless. Howard twice has had 30-point games this season against Phoenix all-star Amare Stoudemire. Emeka Okafor, the player selected second behind Howard in the 2004 NBA Draft, has been on the business end of two 20-point, 20-rebound games through the years, and two weeks ago, Orlando's franchise center battered him for 34 points and nine dunks. And even with Seattle often surrounding Howard with three defenders, he still mustered a career-best 39 points.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Howard's domination has allowed the Magic (14-4) to get off to the second-best start in franchise history. He ranks first in the league in field-goal percentage (61.8 percent), rebounds (15.0), double-doubles (15), free-throw attempts (206) and dunks (81). And because his moves are crisper and more decisive this season, Howard is dunking the ball so much so that he's boosted his scoring to a career-best 23.8 points per night.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">"I don't think anybody in the league has played any better on a consistent basis than he has this season," Magic coach Stan Van Gundy gushed. "He's just bringing it every night, and has been an absolute force."</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Still six days away from his 22nd birthday, Howard has caught the eye of veteran players around the NBA with the way he is breaking the spirit of foes with his leaping ability and strength. Lakers special assistant Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, who saw leagues change the rules early in his playing days because he was unstoppable with the dunk, has taken notice of Orlando's man-child.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">"I've seen the clips of him, and with the incredible stats that he is putting up every night, he's obviously improved a great deal," Abdul-Jabbar said Saturday at the Lakers' practice.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Bynum, the 20-year-old 7-footer whom the Lakers refused to trade in exchange for Minnesota's Kevin Garnett, New Jersey's Jason Kidd or Indiana's Jermaine O'Neal, hopes to test his progress tonight against the more athletic Howard. Already, Bynum seems to be begging for double-team help so that he can contain the Orlando center.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Bynum makes it sound as if Howard is the most unstoppable post player in the game today.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">"He's turned into an absolute beast and definitely, it's going to be a test defensively for me," Bynum said. "He's pretty much the new Shaq of the NBA. If he gets the ball anywhere near the restricted area (deep in the lane), you're in trouble."</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Much the way two-time MVP Steve Nash sets up Phoenix all-star forward Shawn Marion, Magic point guards Jameer Nelson and Carlos Arroyo have established a chemistry inside with Howard. When they drive to the hoop, often drawing the defense to them, Howard usually comes open for an easy alley-oop dunk.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Nelson said the alley-oop pass has become an offensive weapon the Magic have nearly perfected. Of course, all they have to do is get the ball close considering Howard's wingspan can reach 30 inches above the rim.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">"If we just get the ball anywhere up there, you know Dwight's going to finish it hard," Nelson said. "He does such a good job of sealing guys off, and then once he gets the ball he has such a great talent that you are almost at his mercy. You have a choice -- you can either foul him or get dunked on."</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">And Howard seems to be doing the trick for a Magic team that has as many wins and road victories as any team in the NBA.</font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Said Howard: "Dunking is a way I can dominate the game and break the other team's will."</div></font></p> <font size="3" face="Times New Roman, serif">Source: Florida Today</font></p>
