Dwight Howard Should Be All Right

On the Orlando Magic's first possession against the Boston Celtics in Friday night's Game 3, Dwight Howard had Kendrick Perkins on the block and was setting up to make a move.

Howard tried to go middle, got cut off then spun to his outside where he put up a left-handed half-hook. It missed badly, which to his credit, was Howard's only miss of the night.

It's admirable that Howard works on his left hand and feels comfortable enough to use it in games. Then again, the question is really this: Should he be working on and using his left hand so much?

Isn't there plenty of work to be done with his right hand?

Howard spent some time in Games 1 and 2 trying to get into the middle of the lane in order to go to his left, with varying degrees of success.

Howard is far from a finished offensive product. Why then is he using his left hand so much?

If you're a truly dominant center – or strive to be one – do you really need a good off hand? Of course, it helps, but is it a necessity?

Think about the best centers of all time: Wilt Chamberlain, Bill Russell, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, Shaquille O'Neal, Moses Malone ...

Do you remember anything about their off hands? Didn't think so.

Even Yao Ming, who is clearly the most skilled and polished offensive center in the league, doesn't do much with his left. Sure, he'll deposit with it when he's in close, but you won't see him going with the rolling lefty hook just because it's given to him.

Nobody is saying a center, or any player at any position, shouldn't try to be good with both hands. But Howard should wait until he gets more adept with his right hand before he even thinks about going to his left as consistently as he does.

Because all the while, his entire low post game suffers.