Dwight Howard vs. Kel'el Ware Season by Season Comparison
Side by side comparison of each NBA season of Kel'el Ware and Dwight Howard, from their rookie seasons to their last year played, in chronological order with awards, stats, championships and playoff performance of their teams every year.
Who had the better rookie season? Who had best stats in their 10th season? Who won a championship first? These questions and many others, are answered here.
Dwight Howard played 18 years in the NBA, 16 more than Kel'el Ware, who played 2. Dwight Howard had the first of his seasons in 2004-05, while Kel'el Ware had his rookie season in 2024-25. With that starting point, here you can take a look at each of their seasons side by side and compare how their careers evolved in achievements, awards and championships won, the stats they recorded both in the Regular Season and the Playoffs and how their teams performed in the postseason.
Their Careers | |||
| Player | Total Seasons | Playoffs Played | NBA Years |
| Dwight Howard | 18 | 12 | 2004-05 to 2021-22 |
| Kel'el Ware | 2 | 1 | 2024-25 to 2025-26 |
Rookie Season |
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| Dwight Howard | Kel'el Ware | |
| Season | 2004-05 | 2024-25 |
| Team | Orlando Magic | Miami Heat |
| Honors & Awards |  All-Rookie First Team | - |
| - | All-Rookie Second Team | |
| Playoffs | Did not play | Heat Lost East Conf 1st Rd |
Rookie Season Stats Comparison | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular Season Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Dwight Howard | 82 | 32.6 | 12.0 | 3.5 | 6.5 | 10.0 | 0.9 | 0.9 | 1.7 | 2.0 | 2.8 | 4.3 | 8.3 | .520 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | 3.4 | 5.0 | .671 |
| difference: | +18 | +10.4 | +2.7 | +1.7 | +0.9 | +2.6 | +0.3 | +0.6 | -1.1 | -1.1 | +0.3 | +1.0 | +.034 | +0.5 | +1.7 | +2.7 | +4.0 | +.016 | ||
| Kel'el Ware | 64 | 22.2 | 9.3 | 1.8 | 5.6 | 7.4 | 0.9 | 0.6 | 1.1 | 0.9 | 1.7 | 4.0 | 7.3 | .554 | 0.5 | 1.7 | .315 | 0.7 | 1.0 | .687 |
| Playoffs Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Dwight Howard | DNP | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - | - |
| Kel'el Ware | 4 | 18.3 | 4.8 | 1.0 | 3.8 | 4.8 | 1.0 | 0.3 | 0.5 | 0.5 | 0.8 | 2.0 | 4.5 | .444 | 0.8 | 2.8 | .273 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - |
Season 2 |
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| Dwight Howard | Kel'el Ware | |
| Season | 2005-06 | 2025-26 |
| Team | Orlando Magic | Miami Heat |
| Honors & Awards | ||
| Playoffs | Did not play | Did not play (season in progress) |
2nd Season Stats Comparison | ||||||||||||||||||||
| Regular Season Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| G | Min | Pts | ORb | DRb | Reb | Ast | Stl | Blk | TO | PF | FGM / A | % | 3PM / A | % | FTM / A | % | ||||
| Dwight Howard | 82 | 36.8 | 15.8 | 3.5 | 9.0 | 12.5 | 1.5 | 0.8 | 1.4 | 2.6 | 3.4 | 5.7 | 10.7 | .531 | 0.0 | 0.0 | - | 4.3 | 7.3 | .595 |
| difference: | +49 | +12.0 | +3.2 | +0.1 | +1.8 | +1.9 | +1.0 | +0.2 | +0.1 | -1.6 | -1.7 | +0.8 | +1.9 | +.033 | +1.3 | +2.8 | +2.8 | +5.5 | +.219 | |
| Kel'el Ware | 33 | 24.8 | 12.6 | 3.4 | 7.2 | 10.6 | 0.5 | 1.0 | 1.3 | 1.0 | 1.7 | 4.9 | 8.8 | .564 | 1.3 | 2.8 | .473 | 1.5 | 1.8 | .814 |
| Playoffs Stats | ||||||||||||||||||||
| * Neiher Dwight Howard nor Kel'el Ware played in the postseason in their season 2 | ||||||||||||||||||||
Additional Years |
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* Dwight Howard played 16 seasons more than Kel'el Ware in the NBA. In that period—his seasons 3 to 18, from 2007 to 2022—Dwight Howard played in 12 Playoffs and won one NBA Championship. In those 16 extra years over Kel'el Ware, Dwight Howard got these achievements: | |
| Honors & Awards | 5 All-NBA First Team 1 All-NBA Second Team 2 All-NBA Third Team 4 All-Defensive First Team 1 All-Defensive Second Team 3 Defensive Player of the Year 5 Rebounds Leader 2 Blocks Leader 8 All-Star Game |