Former NBA superstar Dwight Howard, in the Philippines preparing with Strong Group Athletics for the Dubai International Basketball Championship set to fire off on Jan. 19, has made it known in media interviews and social media posts that he would be interested in a stint in the PBA.
He's even going as far as to measure himself to see if he would make the 6-foot-9 height limit for the ongoing Commissioner's Cup (he did, barely).
Whether Howard was serious about his PBA intentions or he was just teasing his millions of followers is not clear. Howard just turned 38 last month and is coming off a stint with the Taoyuan Leopards (now Taiwan Beer Leopards) in the T1 League, where he averaged 23.2 points and 16.2 rebounds a game in 20 games.
Howard, though, last played in Taiwan nine months ago, and his stint there ended on a low note as the Leopards lost their last four games and five of their final six. He hasn't played competitively since, although he did work out with the Golden State Warriors prior to the start of the NBA season late last year.
To be fair, he looked ripped and in shape at the Strong Group open practice last week.
The Dubai tournament will run until Jan. 28, by which time the Commissioner's Cup will likely be in the late semifinal stages. Strong Group will play five games over the first seven days and up to three more in the knockout stages, which will give Howard ample time to show his fitness level.
Teams can change imports up to the finals so, if he performs well, then theoretically a team still in contention could roll the dice and sign up Howard.
Assuming he does get a chance to play in the PBA, how would he do and what impact would he have on the league considering no one of his stature and accomplishments has ever played here?
"He's an NBA vet," Meralco Bolts guard Chris Newsome said. "You can't discredit any of his work that he's done before. That speaks for itself and that's at the highest level.
"(In) the PBA, we (have) got a lot of talent here as well. Depending on his body and how in shape he is and if he can keep up with the pace, I think he'd do fairly well."
Newsome thinks Howard would be a match-up nightmare for opposing teams, adding: "He can still jump, he's still a big body. And you see how a lot of people struggle with (seven-time PBA Most Valuable Player) June Mar (Fajardo) already -- and he's very much the same.
"There's not too many guys or too many teams that have people that can cover him, even the teams that have the imports. That's a tough match-up. But of course a lot of that is gonna depend on who's surrounding him, the pieces that are around him that's gonna help him with the double teams that's coming and all of the other stuff."
Newsome also feels that Howard would give a big boost to the league's sagging live attendance.
"It will be exciting to see him in the PBA for sure," he added. "I think he'll bring a lot of people to the games.
"The audience will definitely be involved and it would just be nice to have somebody like that come and play in our league."
But would coaches take a chance on Howard? The responses we got from four PBA coaches were mixed.
"I won't," one coach told ESPN matter-of-factly. "Because you don't know what you're gonna get. He's been there. Is he still hungry? Is he here for the entertainment or is he still hungry to win?
(There are) a lot of questions. He's got the money, so what's the motivation? You have to really investigate deeper."
Another coach said he wasn't sure and needed more time to decide, stating: "(I'm) not sure about that. I mean, he's a force to reckoned with, he's good but I'd have to think about that also. But I'm sure he'd be a welcome addition here in the PBA."
Nonetheless another said he'd sign up Howard in a heartbeat if given a chance, stressing: "He's been in the NBA, he dominated in the NBA. So as a coach, I would love to have him as an import here.
"I'm sure that's gonna be a nightmare for the opposing coaches, to double(-team) him, to triple(-team) him because he's such a great post-up player. I really don't know what the other coaches will do to him but for sure he's gonna be double- or triple-teamed."
A fourth coach agreed by saying: "Why not, right? Oh, my gosh. He's really a game-changer. Obviously he can dominate here.
"He'd probably be just as impressive (as) the threat of June Mar, for all the teams in the PBA -- he would be the exact same. That would be nice.
"If you have a chance to get someone of his caliber, I'd say why not? I'm actually looking forward to see what he does for (Strong Group Athletics) coach Charles Tiu. I'm excited for that. It's really nice that he's over here playing for a local team I know they're playing in Dubai, so I'm looking forward to that and seeing that."