EL SEGUNDO, Calif. — The “beast” is 6-foot-11, 265 pounds, his physique like that of a Greek God.
The beast is quick, athletic, powerful and dominant, a force unlike any other in the NBA.
The beast is Dwight Howard — also known in many circles as “Superman” — who now he has become a target the Los Angeles Lakers must contend with and try to contain.
The beast and his Orlando Magic teammates will be in Los Angeles on Thursday to play the Lakers in Game 1 of the NBA finals at Staples Center.
Howard widely is considered the best center in the league, a work in progress still, but yet such a talent that the Lakers will develop a game plan they hope can keep him from controlling the game.
“He is a beast inside,” said Lakers assistant coach Brian Shaw, who is in charge of devising the scheme against Howard and the Magic. “But I think there are ways to contain him and to contain the beast. As we go through the series, we have to figure out how to do that.”
The Lakers haven’t seen anyone like Howard in the postseason.
The Utah Jazz had centers Jarron Collins, who offered little offensively or defensively, and Mehmet Okur, a three-point shooting big man with little post game.
The Houston Rockets had 7-6 Yao Ming, but he made his living on turnaround jumpers and not so much in the low post. He broke his foot in Game 3 of the Western Conference semifinals and didn’t play the last four games.
The Denver Nuggets had the 6-11, 250-pound Nene, but he doesn’t have the power game Howard has.
“He’s a unique kind of player,” Pau Gasol said Sunday after the Lakers watched film of the Magic. “I don’t think there have been many players like him because of his physical gifts and attributes.”
It will be up to Andrew Bynum to deal with Howard in the beginning. Bynum averaged 8.5 points, 2.0 rebounds and 22.5 minutes in the two regular-season games against Howard. Bynum was limited by foul trouble in the first game.
Howard averaged 21.5 points, 16 rebounds and 2.5 blocked shots in the two games Orlando won over the Lakers.
Gasol and DJ Mbenga will get their turns at Howard.
The Lakers didn’t double team Howard much duing the regular season, preferring not to leave Orlando’s three-point shooters like Hedo Turkoglu and Rashard Lewis alone.
“We are a long team. We have lengthy defenders to deal with Turkoglu and Lewis,” said Lakers coach Phil Jackson, who has lost his last two tries at breaking the tie he has with Red Auerbach for the most NBA championships as a coach with nine. “But I don’t know who can guard this big kid if he’s as physical as he is. Howard is just a real powerhouse down there inside.”
Howard was named the league’s defensive player of the year, another area he can control.
He averaged 21.7 points in the playoffs, including a 40-point effort against the Cleveland Cavaliers in Orlando’s Eastern Conference-clinching Game 6.
Shaw said the idea is to beat Howard to his spots, to eliminate the lob dunks, to crowd him inside, to make him shoot shots, to not allow him deep position, to not let him dominate the game.
“He might be the best post-lane center in the league, meaning he changes ends of the court from defense to offense better than anybody,” Shaw said. “His first three steps are faster than any center. He runs down the middle of the floor and gets deep position in the post. We have to try to eliminate some of that.”
Talk to us
> Give us your news tips.
> Send us a letter to the editor.
> More Herald contact information.
