Joshua Jay Howard (born April 28, 1980) is an American

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appro ...

coach and former professional player who is the head coach of the UNT Dallas Trailblazers men's basketball team. He played

college basketball College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of Student athlete, student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the Higher education in the United States, United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athle ...

for the

Wake Forest Demon Deacons The Wake Forest Demon Deacons are the college athletics in the United States, intercollegiate athletic teams that represent Wake Forest University, located in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. They compete at the National Collegiate Athletic Assoc ...

. He played 10 seasons in the

National Basketball Association The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). The NBA is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United States and Ca ...

(NBA), predominantly with the

Dallas Mavericks The Dallas Mavericks (often referred to as the Mavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Dallas. The Mavericks compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Divisi ...

Early life

Howard was born to Kevin Robinson and Nancy Henderson. His father was absent throughout his childhood and Howard was primarily raised by his maternal grandmother, Helen Howard, in

Winston-Salem, North Carolina Winston-Salem is a city in Forsyth County, North Carolina, United States, and its county seat. At the 2020 United States census, 2020 census, the population was 249,545, making it the List of municipalities in North Carolina, fifth-most populous ...

. Howard was born with

bowed legs Genu varum (also called bow-leggedness, bandiness, bandy-leg, and tibia vara) is a varus deformity marked by (outward) bowing at the knee, which means that the lower leg is angled inward ( medially) in relation to the thigh's axis, giving th ...

and they had to be broken below the knee and reset twice before his second birthday.

High school career

Howard attended Glenn High School in

Kernersville, North Carolina Kernersville is a town in Forsyth County, North Carolina, Forsyth County, North Carolina, and the largest suburb of Winston-Salem. A small portion of the town is also in Guilford County, North Carolina, Guilford County. The population was 26,481 ...

, where he was a First-Team All-State selection in his senior year and averaged six blocks per game while shooting 70%. He also averaged a double-double during his junior and senior years, during which time he also received the Frank Spencer Award (for the top player in Northwest North Carolina) twice. During his senior year Howard was handcuffed outside of a BP gas station the night before his

SAT The SAT ( ) is a standardized test widely used for college admissions in the United States. Since its debut in 1926, its name and Test score, scoring have changed several times. For much of its history, it was called the Scholastic Aptitude Test ...

examination. Howard had been loitering on the premises with some of his friends, and undercover cops, believing the teenagers had been selling drugs, detained them. In order to get into

Wake Forest University Wake Forest University (WFU) is a private research university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina, United States. Founded in 1834, the university received its name from its original location in Wake Forest, north of Raleigh, North Carolina. The R ...

Howard needed an SAT score of at least 950. He did not get a 950, saying his score was "somewhere in the 500s". In lieu, he spent a year at Hargrave Military Academy in

Chatham, Virginia Chatham is a town in Pittsylvania County, Virginia, United States. It is the county seat of Pittsylvania County. Chatham's population was 1,232 at the 2020 census. It is included in the Danville, Virginia metropolitan area. The town was originally ...

, where he averaged a

double-double In basketball, a double-double is a single-game performance in which a player accumulates ten or more in two of the following five statistical categories: points, rebounds, assists, steals, and blocked shots. The first "double" in the ter ...

, with 19.9 points and 10.1 rebounds per game. Howard led Hargrave to a 27–3 record, shooting well on the floor with 56%. He also averaged 44% from behind the three-point line and 85% from the

free throw In basketball, free throws or foul shots are unopposed attempts to score points by shooting from behind the free-throw line (informally known as the foul line or the charity stripe), a line situated at the end of the restricted area. Free throws ...

line. Howard participated in the ACC– SEC game between new signings from the two conferences. Howard scored 14 points in 15 minutes to help lift the ACC team to a 145–115 win over the SEC.

College career

Howard chose to sign with Wake Forest in 1999 over many other colleges due to the proximity of the campus to his family and friends. He majored in

sociology Sociology is the scientific study of human society that focuses on society, human social behavior, patterns of Interpersonal ties, social relationships, social interaction, and aspects of culture associated with everyday life. The term sociol ...

and minored in international studies. During his first year, Howard played in all thirty-six games, starting in all but two. He led the team with 44 steals and ranked fourth on the team with 9.1 points per game. His season high came in a game against

Duke Duke is a male title either of a monarch ruling over a duchy, or of a member of Royal family, royalty, or nobility. As rulers, dukes are ranked below emperors, kings, grand princes, grand dukes, and above sovereign princes. As royalty or nobi ...

during an ACC tournament. Howard scored 19 points, going 7-for-10 from the field and 2-for-2 from behind the three-point line. During his sophomore season Howard was selected to second-team All-ACC. He missed a few games because of the

flu Influenza, commonly known as the flu, is an infectious disease caused by influenza viruses. Symptoms range from mild to severe and often include fever, runny nose, sore throat, muscle pain, headache, coughing, and fatigue. These sympto ...

, playing in 29 games and starting 28. He led the team in scoring that year with 13.6 points per game. Howard earned third-team All-ACC and second team NABC All-District while trailing Darius Songaila in team scoring with 13.9 points per game during his junior season. Deciding to come back for his senior year at Wake Forest, Howard became the first member of his family to graduate from college. He was the unanimous selection as the

Atlantic Coast Conference The Atlantic Coast Conference (ACC) is a collegiate List of NCAA conferences, athletic conference in the United States. Headquartered in Charlotte, North Carolina, the ACC's eighteen member universities compete in the National Collegiate Athlet ...

(ACC) player of the year in 2003 (first since David Thompson in 1975) and led Wake Forest to its first outright regular season league championship in 41 years. He is the second ACC player (after Shane Battier) to amass 1000 points, 500 rebounds, 200 assists, 200 steals, 100 blocks, and 100 three-pointers. Howard was named the national player of the year by FOX, ''College Insider'' and ''Basketball Digest''. He was also a finalist for the John R. Wooden Award and the James Naismith Award in 2003. In his senior season, Howard averaged 19.5 ppg, 8.3 rpg, 2.1 apg, and 1.5 bpg, and won multiple awards, including ACC Player of the Year, All ACC First Team, ACC All-Defensive Team, and AP First Team All-America. Coming into the league, Howard was projected as a mid to late 1st round pick in the 2003 NBA Draft because of his apparent lack of upside.

Professional career

Dallas Mavericks (2003–2010)

Howard was selected in the 2003 NBA draft by the Dallas Mavericks in the first round (29th overall). He played in 67 games (29 starts) during his rookie year, averaging 8.6 points and 5.5 rebounds per game earning him NBA All-Rookie 2nd team honors. In his second season, Howard continued coming off the bench and tasked to do "mop-up minutes" until a nagging injury to Marquis Daniels gave Howard a spot at small forward in the starting lineup. Howard averaged 12.6 points, 6.4 rebounds, and 1.53 steals in 32 minutes of play for the season. In the 2005–06 season, Howard averaged a career-high in scoring (15.6 points) and three-point field goal percentage (.429), in addition to tallying 6.8 rebounds and 1.2 steals per game. He was limited to 59 games due to injury. In the 2006 NBA playoffs, Howard was vital to the Mavs' run to the Finals to the point where the team was 23–0 when Howard scored more than 20 points a game. In game 5 of the

2006 NBA Finals The 2006 NBA Finals was the championship series of the National Basketball Association's (NBA) 2005–06 season, and the conclusion of the season's playoffs. The Dallas Mavericks were favored to win the championship over the Miami Heat. Despit ...

against the

Miami Heat The Miami Heat are an American professional basketball team based in Miami. The Heat compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division (NBA), Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference (NBA), Eastern C ...

, it was asserted by referees that Howard called for a timeout during

Dwyane Wade Dwyane Tyrone Wade Jr. ( or , born January 17, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player who is currently the co-owner of the Utah Jazz of the National Basketball Association. He is also currently the host of the American a ...

's free throw attempts, which only allowed Dallas to inbound the ball at full court instead of setting up for a play at half court. Howard asserted that in fact no timeout was called and that even referee Joey Crawford agreed with him. After

hit his second foul shot to put the

up by one point, Dallas was unable to advance the ball to halfcourt for an attempt at a game-winning shot. Early in 2006,

Team USA The United States national team or Team USA may refer to any of a number of sports team representing the United States in international competitions. Olympic teams Additionally, these teams may compete in other international competitions such as ...

director

Jerry Colangelo Jerry Colangelo (born November 20, 1939) is an American businessman and sports executive. He formerly owned the Phoenix Suns of the NBA, the Phoenix Mercury of the WNBA, the Arizona Sandsharks of the Continental Indoor Soccer League, the A ...

invited Howard to serve as one of Team USA's possible defensive specialists (the other two being Shane Battier of the

Memphis Grizzlies The Memphis Grizzlies (referred to locally as the Grizz) are an American professional basketball team based in Memphis, Tennessee. The Grizzlies compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division of the ...

and Bruce Bowen of the

San Antonio Spurs The San Antonio Spurs are an American professional basketball team based in San Antonio. The Spurs compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Conference (NBA ...

) in the

2008 Summer Olympics The 2008 Summer Olympics (), officially the Games of the XXIX Olympiad () and officially branded as Beijing 2008 (), were an international multisport event held from 8 to 24 August 2008, in Beijing, China. A total of 10,942 athletes fro ...

. Howard turned down the offer, instead going back to run his annual youth camp in his hometown of

. During the 2006–07 season, Howard missed 2 games (

Seattle Seattle ( ) is the most populous city in the U.S. state of Washington and in the Pacific Northwest region of North America. With a population of 780,995 in 2024, it is the 18th-most populous city in the United States. The city is the cou ...

at Dallas, and Dallas at Memphis). His 18.9 points per game combined with 6.8 rebounds a game helped lead the

to a season-best 67–15 record; however, he was left out of All-Star weekend at first. After injuries to

Yao Ming Yao Ming ( zh, c=姚明; born September 12, 1980) is a Chinese basketball executive and former professional player. He played for the Shanghai Sharks of the Chinese Basketball Association (CBA) and the Houston Rockets of the National Baske ...

and Carlos Boozer, Howard was offered the extra spot. Hall of Famer

Magic Johnson Earvin "Magic" Johnson Jr. (born August 14, 1959) is an American businessman and former professional basketball player. Often regarded as the greatest point guard of all time, Johnson List of NBA players who have spent their entire career w ...

commented on Howard's omission at first, saying "I've got a problem with it, I really do". Johnson also went on to say "Josh Howard should be an All-Star. Period." On December 8, 2007, Howard scored a career high 47 points against the

Utah Jazz The Utah Jazz are an American professional basketball team based in Salt Lake City. The Jazz compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Division of the Western Conference. Since the 1991–92 season, the ...

. On April 25, 2008, hours before Game 3 of the Mavericks' first-round series with the

New Orleans Hornets New or NEW may refer to: Music * New, singer of K-pop group The Boyz * ''New'' (album), by Paul McCartney, 2013 ** "New" (Paul McCartney song), 2013 * ''New'' (EP), by Regurgitator, 1995 * "New" (Daya song), 2017 * "New" (No Doubt song), 1 ...

, Howard told

Michael Irvin Michael Jerome Irvin (born March 5, 1966) is an American sports commentator and former professional football player. He played his entire 12-year career as a wide receiver for the Dallas Cowboys of the National Football League (NFL). In 2007, h ...

in an interview on ESPN Radio 103.3 FM that he smoked

marijuana Cannabis (), commonly known as marijuana (), weed, pot, and ganja, List of slang names for cannabis, among other names, is a non-chemically uniform psychoactive drug from the ''Cannabis'' plant. Native to Central or South Asia, cannabis has ...

in the offseason, and that while he would not smoke during the season even if the NBA did not conduct random testing, he did not "think that's stopping me from doing my job." He called his marijuana use "my personal choice". He had previously discussed his marijuana use and its possible link to him slipping to the 29th pick in

2003 NBA draft The 2003 NBA draft was held on June 26, 2003, at The Theater at Madison Square Garden in New York City, New York. The NBA announced that 41 college and high school players and a record 31 international players had filed as early-entry candidates ...

with '' TrueHoop'' blogger Henry Abbot.

Washington Wizards (2010–2011)

On February 13, 2010, Howard was traded to the

Washington Wizards The Washington Wizards are an American professional basketball team based in Washington, D.C. The Wizards compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southeast Division of the Eastern Conference. The team plays i ...

along with

Drew Gooden Andrew Melvin Gooden III (born September 24, 1981) is an American former professional basketball player who is currently a broadcaster for Monumental Sports Network. The power forward (basketball), power forward played 14 seasons in the Nationa ...

, James Singleton and Quinton Ross for Caron Butler, Brendan Haywood, and DeShawn Stevenson. On March 16, 2010, Howard underwent surgery after tearing his ACL against the

Chicago Bulls The Chicago Bulls are an American professional basketball team based in Chicago. The Bulls compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Central Division of the Eastern Conference. The team was founded on January 16 ...

on February 22. Howard was expected to miss 6 to 8 months.

Utah Jazz (2011–2012)

On December 15, 2011, Howard agreed to a one-year contract worth around $3 million with the

Minnesota Timberwolves (2012)

On November 15, 2012, Howard signed a one-year contract for the veteran's minimum with the

Minnesota Timberwolves The Minnesota Timberwolves (often referred to as the Wolves or T-wolves) are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis. The Timberwolves compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Northwest Divisio ...

. He was waived on December 20, 2012, after suffering a torn ACL on December 14, 2012. That game where Howard suffered the ACL tear ended up being the final game of his NBA career. Howard recorded 3 points and 2 rebounds in the Timberwolves' 113 – 102 victory over the

Austin Toros (2013–2014)

On October 25, 2013, Howard signed with the

. However, he was waived just a day later. On October 31, Howard was acquired by the

Austin Toros Austin refers to: Common meanings * Austin, Texas, United States, a city * Austin (given name), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin (surname), a list of people and fictional characters * Austin Motor Company, a British car manufac ...

of the

NBA Development League The NBA G League, or simply the G League, is a professional basketball league in North America that serves as the developmental league of the National Basketball Association (NBA). The league comprises 31 teams; as of the 2024–25 season, ...

, the Spurs' D-League affiliate. On February 27, 2014, he was waived by the Toros due to a season-ending injury. In July 2014, Howard joined the

New Orleans Pelicans The New Orleans Pelicans are an American professional basketball team based in New Orleans. The Pelicans compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the Southwest Division (NBA), Southwest Division of the Western Confere ...

for the 2014 NBA Summer League.

Coaching career

In July 2016, Howard was hired by

Piedmont International University Carolina University (CU), formerly Piedmont International University (PIU), is a private Christian university in Winston-Salem, North Carolina. Carolina University offers both residential and online programs including dual enrollment, undergrad ...

to be their new head coach. He led the team to a 49–49 record in four seasons. In April 2020, he was hired as the head coach of the University of North Texas at Dallas, which began play as an NAIA member in the 2020–21 season.

Career statistics

College

, - , style="text-align:left;", 1999–2000 , style="text-align:left;", Wake Forest , 36 , , 34 , , 24.9 , , .460 , , .286 , , .583 , , 4.7 , , 1.8 , , 1.2 , , .9 , , 9.2 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2000–01 , style="text-align:left;", Wake Forest , 29 , , 28 , , 27.2 , , .490 , , .391 , , .685 , , 5.9 , , 1.8 , , 2.0 , , 1.1 , , 13.6 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2001–02 , style="text-align:left;", Wake Forest , 31 , , 26 , , 27.4 , , .504 , , .329 , , .657 , , 7.7 , , 2.1 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , 13.9 , - , style="text-align:left;", 2002–03 , style="text-align:left;", Wake Forest , 31 , , 31 , , 32.3 , , .477 , , .373 , , .833 , , 8.3 , , 1.9 , , 2.1 , , 1.5 , , 19.5 , - , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 127 , , 119 , , 27.8 , , .483 , , .353 , , .708 , , 6.6 , , 1.9 , , 1.7 , , 1.1 , , 13.9

NBA

Regular season

, - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Dallas Dallas () is a city in the U.S. state of Texas and the most populous city in the Dallas–Fort Worth metroplex, the List of Texas metropolitan areas, most populous metropolitan area in Texas and the Metropolitan statistical area, fourth-most ...

, 67 , , 29 , , 23.7 , , .430 , , .303 , , .703 , , 5.5 , , 1.4 , , 1.0 , , .8 , , 8.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 76 , , 76 , , 32.2 , , .475 , , .296 , , .733 , , 6.4 , , 1.4 , , 1.5 , , .6 , , 12.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 59 , , 58 , , 32.5 , , .471 , , .429 , , .734 , , 6.3 , , 1.9 , , 1.2 , , .4 , , 15.6 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 70 , , 69 , , 35.1 , , .459 , , .385 , , .827 , , 6.8 , , 1.8 , , 1.2 , , .8 , , 18.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 76 , , 76 , , 36.3 , , .455 , , .319 , , .813 , , 7.0 , , 2.2 , , .8 , , .4 , , 19.9 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 52 , , 51 , , 32.0 , , .451 , , .345 , , .782 , , 5.1 , , 1.6 , , 1.1 , , .6 , , 18.0 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 31 , , 9 , , 26.7 , , .401 , , .267 , , .790 , , 3.6 , , 1.4 , , .7 , , .3 , , 12.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Washington Washington most commonly refers to: * George Washington (1732–1799), the first president of the United States * Washington (state), a state in the Pacific Northwest of the United States * Washington, D.C., the capital of the United States ** A ...

, 4 , , 3 , , 22.8 , , .435 , , .273 , , .750 , , 3.3 , , 1.0 , , .8 , , .5 , , 14.5 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

, 18 , , 10 , , 22.7 , , .358 , , .241 , , .617 , , 4.1 , , 1.3 , , .7 , , .3 , , 8.4 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Utah Utah is a landlocked state in the Mountain states, Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. It is one of the Four Corners states, sharing a border with Arizona, Colorado, and New Mexico. It also borders Wyoming to the northea ...

, 43 , , 18 , , 23.0 , , .399 , , .243 , , .773 , , 3.7 , , 1.2 , , .7 , , .2 , , 8.7 , - , align="left" , , align="left" ,

Minnesota Minnesota ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Upper Midwestern region of the United States. It is bordered by the Canadian provinces of Manitoba and Ontario to the north and east and by the U.S. states of Wisconsin to the east, Iowa to the so ...

, 11 , , 4 , , 18.8 , , .403 , , .313 , , .583 , , 3.3 , , .4 , , .9 , , .3 , , 6.7 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 507 , , 403 , , 30.3 , , .448 , , .332 , , .770 , , 5.7 , , 1.6 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , 14.3 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", All-Star , 1 , , 0 , , 20.0 , , .333 , , .000 , , .500 , , 4.0 , , 3.0 , , .0 , , .0 , , 3.0

Playoffs

, - , align="left" ,

2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and Its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 60 ...

, align="left" ,

, 5 , , 0 , , 17.2 , , .222 , , .200 , , .909 , , 6.4 , , .8 , , 1.2 , , 1.2 , , 5.4 , - , align="left" ,

2005 2005 was designated as the International Year for Sport and Physical Education and the International Year of Microcredit. The beginning of 2005 also marked the end of the International Decade of the World's Indigenous Peoples, Internationa ...

, align="left" ,

, 13 , , 13 , , 32.9 , , .503 , , .250 , , .745 , , 7.4 , , 1.8 , , .8 , , .5 , , 15.5 , - , align="left" ,

2006 2006 was designated as the International Year of Deserts and Desertification. Events January * January 1– 4 – Russia temporarily cuts shipment of natural gas to Ukraine during a price dispute. * January 12 – A stampede during t ...

, align="left" ,

, 23 , , 23 , , 35.8 , , .453 , , .369 , , .808 , , 7.4 , , 1.4 , , 1.0 , , .6 , , 16.7 , - , align="left" ,

2007 2007 was designated as the International Heliophysical Year and the International Polar Year. Events January * January 1 **Bulgaria and Romania 2007 enlargement of the European Union, join the European Union, while Slovenia joins the Eur ...

, align="left" ,

, 6 , , 6 , , 41.3 , , .515 , , .389 , , .704 , , 9.8 , , 2.8 , , 2.2 , , .8 , , 21.3 , - , align="left" ,

2008 2008 was designated as: *International Year of Languages *International Year of Planet Earth *International Year of the Potato *International Year of Sanitation The Great Recession, a worldwide recession which began in 2007, continued throu ...

, align="left" ,

, 5 , , 5 , , 34.2 , , .292 , , .100 , , .800 , , 7.0 , , 1.4 , , .4 , , .4 , , 12.6 , - , align="left" ,

2009 2009 was designated as the International Year of Astronomy by the United Nations to coincide with the 400th anniversary of Galileo Galilei's first known astronomical studies with a telescope and the publication of Astronomia Nova by Joha ...

, align="left" ,

, 10 , , 10 , , 29.5 , , .438 , , .250 , , .776 , , 5.1 , , 1.3 , , .9 , , .4 , , 15.8 , - , align="left" ,

2012 2012 was designated as: *International Year of Cooperatives *International Year of Sustainable Energy for All Events January *January 4 – The Cicada 3301 internet hunt begins. * January 12 – Peaceful protests begin in the R ...

, align="left" ,

, 4 , , 3 , , 15.8 , , .294 , , .500 , , .800 , , 3.5 , , 1.0 , , .5 , , .3 , , 3.8 , - class="sortbottom" , style="text-align:center;" colspan="2", Career , 66 , , 60 , , 32.0 , , .440 , , .311 , , .782 , , 6.9 , , 1.5 , , 1.0 , , .6 , , 14.8

Awards and achievements

* ACC Player of the Year: 2003 * All ACC First Team: 2003 * ACC All-Defensive Team: 2003 * AP First Team All-America: 2003 * NBA All-Rookie Second Team:

* NBA All-Star:

References

External links

*
Official websiteESPN.com Profile
{{DEFAULTSORT:Howard, Josh 1980 births Living people All-American college men's basketball players American men's basketball players American men's basketball coaches Austin Toros players Basketball players from Winston-Salem, North Carolina Basketball coaches from North Carolina Dallas Mavericks draft picks Dallas Mavericks players Minnesota Timberwolves players NBA All-Stars Small forwards Utah Jazz players Wake Forest Demon Deacons men's basketball players Washington Wizards players Hargrave Military Academy alumni 21st-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century African-American sportsmen 20th-century American sportsmen