The Start of Something Big

The elements for a really good rivalry have been simmering through the first four months of the NBA season and could come to a boil in March.

Trouble is, you have to wonder if either side of the rivalry even knows what's cooking?

Dwight Howard and Emeka Okafor, selected 1-2 in the NBA Draft last June, have given the NBA its best hope for a big-man rivalry since Shaquille O'Neal and Alonzo Mourning entered the league in 1992 as the first and second picks.

They score, they rebound, they block shots and they have been doing all of it since opening night when Howard posted the first double-double of his career with 12 points and 10 rebounds. In fact, Howard averaged a double-double until just before the midway point of the season.

Okafor took the double-double accomplishment to an even higher level. He scored and rebounded in double figures 19 straight games between Nov. 21 and Jan. 1, a record for NBA rookies.

Together, they clearly separated themselves from the rest of the 2004-2005 rookie class, turning the Rookie of the Year race into a two-man battle that could be tilted in either players' direction March 21 and 24 when the Magic play Charlotte in back-to-back games.

The problem, as mentioned earlier, is that neither guy is feeding the rivalry stew. There is none of the noticeable friction that existed when O'Neal and Mourning were on the court together. Those two warmed the rivalry to red-hot status right away with actions and attitude, if not words.

They didn't exactly hate each other, but there weren't any high-fives and bear hugs when they met. O'Neal scowled with satisfaction every time he dunked on Mourning, while Mourning let a contented glare speak for his satisfaction every time he hit a jumper in Shaq's face.

Howard and Okafor? Nada. Not one traceable sign that they even knew the other guy was on the floor. Their stats were about dead even the first two meetings this season.

Howard played 44 minutes, had 24 rebounds, 15 points and four blocks. Okafor played 62 minutes, had 20 rebounds, 27 points and four blocks. After the game, their comments about each other could have been written by their mothers.

"Rivalries are supposed to be when you say stuff like 'I don't like this guy,' but really I do like Dwight," Okafor said. "I don't have any resentment for him at all. He's a good kid and a good basketball player."

"Emeka is a really good player, but it's not a rivalry, it's just another game," Howard said. "It doesn't matter who we're playing, I've got to go play and try to have fun."

OK, so maybe the rivalry issue is going to take some time to develop.

What hasn't taken time to develop is confirmation that the Howard-Okafor debate that raged so passionately before last summer's draft, was in fact a win-win situation for Orlando and Charlotte.

Howard was considered a risk because he came out of a small high school in Atlanta. His athleticism and skills were obvious, but that does not automatically translate from high school into the NBA game. See Kwame Brown and Eddy Curry for recent examples.

"I'll admit that I looked at Dwight with some apprehension because he was a high school guy," [former] Magic Coach Johnny Davis said. "He was rangy, long and very athletic, but the thing that I liked right away was that you could see there was room to fill out. You could see he was going to get bigger and better and he was only 18 years old. That's a pretty nice package to start with."

And the Magic wasted no time. Howard was a starter in Summer Rookie League games. He was a starter in the first exhibition game. He was a starter opening night of the regular season and has started every game since then.

"That's the way I wanted it," he said. "I wasn't expecting to be brought along slowly. I wanted to find out what I could do right away."

Okafor was the more proven commodity. He spent three seasons at Connecticut, earning not just a national championship ring, but also a college degree. That level of maturity is one reason he was able to improve his skills each season in college. He was a diligent worker and that didn't stop when he jumped to the NBA.

"Emeka is big, he's strong and he gets it," Charlotte Coach Bernie Bickerstaff said. "We are trying to lay the foundation for something here and he understands that. We show him what we want to do and right away, he's doing it. He has a terrific work ethic and routine, which I think are the trademarks of all really great players in this league."

If there was a concern about either rookie before the season, it was how they would contribute at the offensive end. Howard enjoyed a size advantage in high school that disappeared the minute he stepped on the floor against professionals. He was so raw during Summer League games that the only time it seemed safe to get him the ball was on an offensive rebound.

"Dwight started out dunking everything, which was good because he was good at going to the offensive boards," teammate Pat Garrity said. "But what has amazed me is how much his touch is improving around the basket. I can't believe how good he's getting with his left hand. Give him another year to add a jump hook or some other move and watch out!"

"Dwight's offense is going to grow as needed for the team," added assistant coach Clifford Ray. "That's the thing I really like about him: He does whatever is needed to improve the team. We don't need much offense from him right now, but he's quite capable and working hard every day to get comfortable enough to where we can go to him. The time will come and I'm here to tell you, he will be ready when he's needed."

Okafor got labeled as a defensive specialist while at Connecticut and hasn't been able to shed it despite shooting 59 percent and averaging 17.9 points his final season in college.

Critics were still reserved about his offense as a pro, even when he rang up the incredible run of 19 straight double-doubles that broke a record set by O'Neal. Okafor was leading the NBA in offensive rebounds the first half of the season and that, they said, was the reason he was scoring.

"Emeka is an innate rebounder so he's doing what comes natural to him," Bickerstaff said. "I am a firm believer that when you get to the NBA, the best idea is to be good at what you do and get that in place. I think Emeka has done that.

"The next step for him will be to develop counters for what opponents do to stop him. That was the great thing about a guy like Kareem [Abdul-Jabbar]. If you took something away one season, when he came back the next season, he had developed a counter move."

OK, that's a discussion for next season. What about this year?

The Rookie of the Year award could go either way. Okafor got off to a better start with that phenomenal run in December, but he was playing for an expansion team. He didn't have a whole lot around him, so the focus was on him nearly every night and some of his stats might be inflated because of it.

Howard's teammates were more established, thus the Magic never had to make him the focal point in a game. He has been a steady contributor all season and shown noticeable signs of improvement since the first of January.

So who got the better end of the deal: Orlando or Charlotte?

"What I didn't know about Dwight and what I have really come to appreciate is how dedicated he is to his profession," Davis said. "He works hard every single day and you can see the results as he improves so no, in no way would we second guess our decision to take him. He has been everything we hoped for and more."

"Did the Magic get what they wanted with Dwight? Yes," Bickerstaff said. "Did we get what we wanted with Emeka? Absolutely! I'm sure both teams will be very happy with their decisions for a long, long time."

With at least four games a season between these two teams, the debate -- and rivalry -- can build for a lot of years.

Bill Fay originally wrote this story for the March issue of Magic Magazine. He is a freelance writer and regular contributor to the magazine.