Washington Wizards: Dwight Howard will have surgery

Dwight Howard will likely need a surgical procedure for his gluteal injury, but is seeking a second opinion.

According to Yahoo Sports’ Chris Haynes, Dwight Howard will undergo surgery. ESPN.com’s Adrian Wojnarowski, broke the news Thursday night that Howard “will likely need a surgical procedure to provide relief from a gluteal injury that has frequently sidelined him this season.”

Now, it’s for certain that the big man will go under the knife. Howard is expected to miss 2-3 months with this procedure.

He’s been durable throughout his career, playing fewer than 71 games only once. Unfortunately for the Washington Wizards, Howard has been sidelined for the majority of the season thus far.

Only having played in 9 games, the All-Star center has only given the team glimpses of his usefulness in the lineup . He’s been averaging 12.9 points and 9.2 rebounds per game, but most importantly given the Wizards a defensive presence on the interior.

This injury means that Thomas Bryant will be relied on more heavily. Unfortunately for everyone, this also indicates that we might be seeing more of Ian Mahinmi and Jason Smith. Both have proven to be terrible substitutes, but the team might not have a choice.

Personally, they should go out and sign another veteran big man that can be more consistent and productive. However, knowing Washington, they will sit tight with the current roster that they’ve constructed.

It’s a positive thing that Howard is finally getting this situation properly taken care off. Nagging injuries are the worst. How a glute injury can be this serious is beyond me…

Let’s hope that this process won’t be that long. Howard did make a big difference for the Wizards when he played.

To stay up to date on all things Wizards this season, be sure to follow Wiz of Awes throughout the season.