Washington Wizards centre Dwight Howard will miss a significant portion of the regular season after undergoing surgery in Los Angeles.
Injury update on Dwight Howard, who will be re-evaluated in approximately two to three months. #DCFamilyhttps://t.co/xQVv1e0dEy
— Washington Wizards (@WashWizards) November 30, 2018
The surgery is meant to alleviate pain stemming from a gluteal injury that has limited Howard to just nine games this season. The decision to undergo surgery comes after Howard consulted with a nerve specialist.
After missing the first seven games of the season, Howard returned to the lineup and averaged 12.8 points, 9.2 rebounds and 0.4 blocks in 25.5 minutes per game. He has missed the last five games, playing most recently on Nov. 20 against the Clippers.
It's another blow for the Wizards who have struggled this season and are just 8-13 and currently sit in ninth place in the Eastern Conference, underwhelming for a team that's made the playoffs in four of the last five seasons and has not had a losing record since 2012-13.
Howard signed a 2-year, $11M contract with the Wizards in the offseason after appearing in 81 games last season for the Charlotte Hornets. The Wizars are his fourth team in four seasons, not including the Brooklyn Nets who acquired Howard in the offseason before buying him out of the remainder of his contract which cleared the path to sign with Washington.