Howard's going through growing pains vs. Pistons

by Mike Kahn

Updated: May 13, 2008, 6:05 PM EST 14 comments

After all, Weisbrod was a hockey guy (heck, he's back in hockey today) and Howard was just a naive kid from a tiny Christian school in Atlanta. With the braces gleaming, the skinny 6-11 center even promised to convert the entire NBA to his religious beliefs.

Well, nearly four years later, Howard hasn't converted the league, but certainly has his own following. He blows away Okafor in performance and value, plus he's three years younger and plays much bigger. He stole the show at the All-Star Weekend Slam Dunk contest with his Superman act, revitalizing the dying sideshow. The two-time All-Star has also grown into a 265-pound monster who led the league in rebounding. His trifecta of 20-20 games in the Magic's decisive first-round win over Toronto? He became the first player since Wilt Chamberlain to pull off such a feat.

So why are the Magic and Howard down 3-1 to the Detroit Pistons?

Well, for starters, he's still only 22 with an immature offensive game, and he's being smothered by a defense that has been dominant for the past half dozen seasons. We're talking veterans Rasheed Wallace, Antonio McDyess and Theo Ratliff, along with young ruffian Jason Maxiell. The result has caused a staggering drop off for Howard, averaging 15.5 points and 12.5 rebounds in the series -- very good for mere mortals, but not good enough for Superman. Not after averaging 22.6 points, 18.2 rebounds, and 3.8 blocks against the Raptors.

And it all became even more visible in the pivotal one-point loss in Game 4 at Orlando, when Howard struggled with just 8 points on 3-of-12 shooting. He only shot two free throws and was visibly overwhelmed and frustrated nearly the entire game, mostly by McDyess.

To be fair, a major part of the problem is he has very little, if any, help inside. Rashard Lewis and Hedo Turkoglu are his two forwards, but they are soft perimeter players -- on the floor to spot up for kick-outs when Howard gets double-teamed in the post. The Magic are also very small in the backcourt, which allows the much bigger Chauncey Billups and Richard Hamilton to dominate 5-10 Jameer Nelson and any number of the undersized shooting guards they use. Magic coach Stan Van Gundy did throw in 7-foot Polish rookie Marcin Gortat for a few minutes in the heart-breaking one-point loss in Game 4, but that's it.

He's going with what took him to this point and his roster options are few. Plus he gets to deal with Nelson ridiculously guaranteeing a win in Game 5.

What makes it even bleaker for the Magic is the Pistons are 14-3 in close-out games since they began their run of five consecutive trips to the Eastern Conference finals -- now on the brink of their sixth. Orlando's only win in the series came in Game 3 at home when Billups went down in the first quarter with a strained hamstring. He didn't even play in Game 4, leaving the playmaking responsibilities to rookie Rodney Stuckey and ancient Lindsey Hunter.

Keep in mind only eight teams have ever come back from a 3-1 deficit to win a series, the last one being in 2006 when the Suns came back against the Lakers. The time before that, ironically, was when the Pistons began this run in 2003 -- stealing the series from Tracy McGrady and the Magic after trailing 3-1.

So that brings us back to Howard.

He has come a long way physically in such a short time to dominate the interior of most games -- particularly during the regular season to earn first team All-NBA honors. His rebounding, shot-blocking and thunderous dunks were dominant all season, while the rest of the team fired away from 3-point range.

But the postseason is different. This is a time-tested Pistons core. Although they have gotten too full of themselves at times and gotten lax after big wins -- even in the playoffs -- that isn't likely in Game 5. Chances are coach Flip Saunders and president Joe Dumars will opt to let Billups sit another game with hopes that Stuckey and Hunter can ride the home crowd to another win.

The only real way this series this series can flip is if Howard suddenly takes another huge step in his development. Of course Turkoglu, the league's most improved player; and Lewis, the highest paid free agent from this past offseason, and even mighty mouth Nelson are capable of going off from 3-point range. But it all starts with the guy in the middle. He has shed the braces. He's stopped trying to convert the world. And that skinny frame has been replaced by massive shoulders and arms that often swallow the ball and the basket.

It just hasn't happened in this series against those wily Pistons post players. Mentally, he just hasn't gained enough experience to deal with all the looks they're giving him and how to overcome them with his own will. And unless there is a sudden appearance of Superman's cape during Game 5 in the Palace, it isn't going to happen.

Not this season.