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5 worst starters of the Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard era

By Harrison Brown

ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 13: Dwight Howard #12 of the Orlando Magic walks off the court during the game against the Miami Heat at Amway Center on March 13, 2012 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images)
ORLANDO, FL - MARCH 13: Dwight Howard #12 of the Orlando Magic walks off the court during the game against the Miami Heat at Amway Center on March 13, 2012 in Orlando, Florida. NOTE TO USER: User expressly acknowledges and agrees that, by downloading and or using this photograph, User is consenting to the terms and conditions of the Getty Images License Agreement. (Photo by Sam Greenwood/Getty Images) /
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Tony Battie, Dwight Howard, Orlando Magic
Tony Battie was an important mentor for Dwight Howard early in his career. But he did not provide much else on the court. (Photo by Lisa Blumenfeld/Getty Images) /

5 worst starters of the Orlando Magic’s Dwight Howard era

Tony Battie (2005-09)

183 starts, 5.9 PPG, 5.0 RPG

Tony Battie is the only player on this list to manage to start most of two seasons. He spent five seasons with the Magic, but only two as a starter in 2006 and 2007.

The Orlando Magic acquired him before Dwight Howard’s rookie season for Drew Gooden, Steven Hunter and Anderson Varejao. Orlando was probably not thrilled with that investment years later, but Battie again brought a veteran presence to show Howard how to rise to stardom.

Battie was probably the most influential veteran on the Magic’s roster and a critical player who helped guide Howard through his early years.

Tony Battie’s first season as a starter was essentially a replacement for Kelvin Cato as he rehabbed an injured shoulder. But Battie proved that he belonged.

He started 81 games alongside Howard and was again given a role as a non-scoring big man who focused on rebounds. But he did have a trait that Cato did not.

Battie had an impressive mid-range jump shot, and at his height of 6-foot-11 could get it off over most defenders. He averaged 7.9 points per game spreading the floor (or at least considered spreading the floor in this era) for Dwight to develop his interior offensive repertoire during the 2006 season.

The Magic took their time on offense this year and was the second worst in field goals attempted this year. But the team was third in field goal percentage and sixth in three-point percentage. Orlando would play a lot of half-court offense and focus on offensive sets rather than pushing the pace under coach Brian Hill.

Battie only averaged 5.6 rebounds per game in his first season as a starter, but that was still second-best on the team. Dwight Howard was averaging the second most rebounds in the NBA at 12.5 per game, only 0.2 rebounds per game behind Kevin Garnett.

Howard was a force to be reckoned with when rebounding and he started to blossom into a dominant interior presence. He single-handedly made Orlando a top-three rebounding team in the NBA and gave Battie some freedom to play toward his strengths.

Tony Battie was not as much of a paint protector as Kelvin Cato so Dwight Howard occupied this assignment for the starting unit and Darko Milicic took on those duties with the bench.

The following season, Battie played in 66 contests and started in all of them. Hill made the decision to move Battie to power forward and play Howard as the full-time center.

This paid off in dividends as the team reached the postseason and continued to develop Howard into the All-Star talent he became. Battie’s statistics decreased with increased roles given to both Howard and Milicic.

Battie’s defense started to decline and at 30 years old his timeline started to not align with the rest of the core of the roster.

The next season he hurt his shoulder and was sidelined for the entire 2008 season. That proved to be fortuitous as it accelerated a plan to line up Rashard Lewis at power forward alongside Hedo Turkoglu. A championship core was born.

When Battie finally returned he was more of a bench presence and third-string big man when Howard was a perennial MVP candidate.

Battie was a stable presence for Orlando while Howard developed and the organization decided that a player who can stretch the floor even more would be more suited for the starting lineup.

Lewis became the perfect front-court pair for Howard and led to several seasons of Magic success.