Actually I take that back. Anyone who chooses Howard shouldn't be put to sleep. Everyone's entitled to their opinion and I'm generally OK with agreeing to disagree. In regard to this specific question, however, I don't think you can make any argument for Howard. But I apologize for exaggerating the consequences of anyone choosing Howard over LBJ.
- Howard has an offensive game that isn't even mediocre. He's not a player you can throw the ball into and expect to get buckets or even to draw double-teams. The nicest thing you can say about his offensive arsenal is that he can dunk really well. That's it. You can equate his offensive game to that of Tyson Chandler. And you want to build a team around him?
- As great an off-the-ball defender as Howard is, he isn't nearly as good on the ball. And he still struggles to stay out of foul trouble.
- LeBron is a truck with arms. When he decides he wants to get to the rim, there's not much anyone can do about it. And obviously the guy can finish at the basket. Just look back to two years ago in that epic playoff game at Detroit, when he singlehandedly won it for the Cavs. EVERYBODY IN THE BUILDING knew he was going to the basket for the ties/win, including the Pistons defenders, and they STILL couldn't stop him. He essentially told Detroit "Hey, I'm going to do this at this time and you're not going to stop it." And they didn't. That was a miserable night for me personally, but it was unbelievable to watch.
- LeBron is as gifted a passer and facilitator as anyone in the league. He has superior court vision and handles double-teams as well as could be expected.
- LeBron plays pretty good defense. He's long and obviously athletic and late in games he really gets after it.
When you need a basket, when the game is on the line, you CANNOT give the ball to Dwight Howard. He can't score and he's also a horrific FT shooter. The fact that LeBron puts up the offensive #'s that he does without a consistent jumper or above-average FT shooting speaks volumes about how good the rest of his game is.