'T' Time: Magic center racking up technical fouls
ORLANDO, Fla. -- Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard has gotten whistled for technical fouls for just about everything this season.
For
talking trash and for talking back. For holding onto the ball too long
and for dropping the ball and walking away. From yelling about a no-call
and for yelling at himself.
Heck, Howard says he's even been T'd up for asking about why he gets T'd up.
And
Thursday night against the New York Knicks, Howard picked up his 12th
technical foul of the season, leaving him just four shy of an automatic
one-game suspension.
"I guess they say I'm the NBA's bad boy," Howard said with his trademark smile.
Howard
leads the league in technical fouls -- and that's even after having two
rescinded -- but Magic coach Stan Van Gundy said that it's partly
because his star center has the cards stacked against him.
"They're
looking for him -- every one of them," Van Gundy said of the league's
referees. "They make sure (when) they make a call, they're looking right
at him.
"He's not going to be treated like everybody else in the
league. ... It's a different ballgame, and he's either going to make an
adjustment or he's not."
Making an adjustment is easier said than done when you take the kind of
abuse Howard takes in the post. Recently acquired Magic guard Gilbert
Arenas likens Howard's physical play down low -- and the beating that
comes with it -- to that of a former Magic center.
"He's a
dominant force, just like when Shaq was younger," Arenas said. "He's so
strong that the contact that's given to him, they're not going to call
it as fast, but as soon as he fouls somebody, they're going to call
(it). ... I've seen it when Shaq was younger, and I can see it now, (so)
you can see why they get so frustrated."
Despite Howard's
constantly rising frustration level, Van Gundy isn't buying the idea
that he's the NBA's resident rabble-rouser.
"I've said this
before and I'll stick to it, I don't think he's any harder on officials
than anybody else in the league," he said. "I don't even think he's one
of the hardest guys on officials, quite honestly. I could probably give
you 20 guys who are harder on officials than he is."
Whatever
reasons there are for Howard picking up techs, he needs to find a
solution, because with a new cast of characters in the locker room and a
paper-thin frontcourt backing Howard up, the Magic can't afford for him
to be on the bench in a suit.
"When I'm out of my game and teams
frustrate me, it trickles on down to everybody else on the team,"
Howard said. "So I've got to stay composed, as hard as it is. I've got
to do it for my teammates. That's what really matters."
A Howard
suspension would likely lead Van Gundy to start 6-foot-8 bruiser Brandon
Bass at the center position, with Ryan Anderson or Malik Allen coming
off the bench. And while a Howard suspension seems inevitable, that's
not a position Orlando wants to be in, especially down the homestretch.
"We
all because of the rule change, the 'respect of the game,' the emotion
at times that we can show is kind of limited, and we just all have to
get used to it," point guard Jameer Nelson said. "We have to be smarter,
and he has to be smarter than he's been and understand that we need
him. We can't afford for him to miss games, especially now."
Howard certainly has enough people in his corner trying to keep him calm, cool and collected.
"My
job is to keep the guy composed and keep him under wraps," Nelson said.
"It's tough, but we as players have to be on each other and just try to
be smart."
Arenas has his own way of helping Howard keep from letting his temper get the best of him.
"I
told him, I said ... 'Every foul that you get that I think is dumb is
200 bucks for the team,'" Arenas said. "So I think we've won 400 bucks."
If all else fails, Howard can always try a new alternative to griping about calls.
"I'm
going to start learning sign language," Howard joked. "I'll just do
signs to the bench (and) to the fans. Just sign language. That way (the
refs) can't hear me."