Howard Shares Time, Money

<div class="quote_poster">Quote:</div><div class="quote_post">Dwight Howard just didn't want to leave.

The Orlando Magic power forward was almost 90 minutes into a scheduled 30-minute stop at Lovell Elementary School in Apopka last week -- there to present a $15,000 check -- and he obviously lost track of time.

It was past the end of the normal school day. The teachers were restless, parents were waiting outside, and even the principal was getting a little antsy.

Howard just smiled and laughed and kept talking, entertaining the 30 kids who were enjoying his banter and peppering him with endless questions.

"How did you get so tall? What size shoe do you wear? How many shoes do you wear? What's your name again?"

His ceremonial check presentation turned into a combination math lesson/reading lesson/religious sermon/comedy routine and a good old-fashioned "eat your vegetables, listen to your parents," lecture. A Magic staffer had brought handouts for the children, but Howard wouldn't give them away until each child individually answered one of his questions, proving they were learning something from his stop.

"You could tell Dwight really had his heart into this," said Elvis Epps, assistant principal at Lovell. "We've had NBA people here before, but none of them seemed to enjoy it as much as he did."

Howard, 19, is about to embark on his second NBA season since the Magic made him the No. 1 pick of the 2004 NBA draft. He talked to the kids about taking on responsibility, but he could have been talking about himself.

"My responsibility as a player will grow this season. I'm pretty sure of that," he said after he finished with the children. "I'm looking forward to doing a lot more things this season. That's something I've been preparing for. I'm going to be a lot stronger physically."

Howard averaged 12 points, 10 rebounds and 1.6 blocks last season, becoming the only player in NBA history to come directly from high school and start all 82 games as a rookie.

Although the Magic brought him along slowly last season, hardly including him in the offense, he expects that to change now under new Coach Brian Hill.

"Last year, we started fine, but we got sidetracked by some of the egos," he said. "This year is going to be totally different."

Jent back in school

Five months ago, Chris Jent was coaching his heart out for the Magic, trying to save a season that was swirling down the drain while some of his best players were injured and on the sideline.

Today, he is back in the classroom -- literally. He has discovered how volatile the NBA coaching profession can be.

Jent joined the Magic staff before last season as the third assistant coach, suddenly was elevated to interim head coach with 18 games remaining but now finds himself out of the league entirely with training camp a month away.

"It's a tough profession, kind of unpredictable," Jent said with a sigh. "But I'd still like to get back into it."</div>

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