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Oh boy. It looks like we will have to wait a little longer to see Dwight Howard on the floor for the Wizards. Scott Brooks told reporters on Monday that Howard had a setback over the weekend with his back injury.
Dwight Howard had a setback over the weekend with his lower back, Brooks says. He’s going back to DC for a pain injection when the team goes to Detroit.
— Fred Katz (@FredKatz) October 8, 2018
A little more context: Dwight Howard went through a light workout with coaches during the day off on Saturday (no contact). By Sunday, he felt soreness again but still went with the team to NYC.
— Candace Buckner (@CandaceDBuckner) October 8, 2018
Today he saw a specialist and it was recommended he return to DC for pain injection
Howard said last month at Media Day his current back issues sprung up while traveling overseas during the summer, but said it was only a “minor setback.” Since then, he has yet to go through a full practice and missed both of the Wizards’ first two preseason games.
Now, with this setback, Howard won’t have an opportunity to play with the Wizards against NBA competition before the start of the regular season. Obviously, he won’t play in Monday’s game against the Knicks and he won’t be able to play in Wednesday’s at Detroit since he’s traveling back to Washington. The earliest Howard could return is Friday for the Wizards’ preseason finale against the Guangzhou Long-Lions of the Chinese Basketball Association. After that, the Wizards don’t play again until they kick off their regular season campaign on Thursday, October 18 against the Miami Heat.