Naismith Basketball Hall of Famer Dwight Howard isn’t done playing basketball. The 40-year-old center is signing with Black Fortress Tbilisi of the Georgian A-League, according to the team’s Instagram account.
Howard, who hails from Atlanta, Georgia, in the United States, set his sights on the southwest Asian country of Georgia despite having announced his retirement in March.
In a previous Instagram post, Howard — who has played internationally since he left the NBA in 2022 — asked his followers to comment with the flag of a country he should play in for his next destination. Georgia ended up as the selection.
“Georgia, I’ll be on my way! Not my hometown, Atlanta, Georgia, but Tbilisi, Georgia!” Howard wrote in the caption of the post announcing his signing. “I saw all your flags in the comments on my last post and decided that’s where we should take the journey!”
Tbilisi is the nation’s capital.
Howard indicated in the video announcing his signing that this would be the last time he took the court professionally. He was inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame’s Class of 2025 before he announced his initial retirement from basketball in a post on X in March.
Black Fortress plays in the second division of Georgian basketball, with the Georgian Superliga being the top of the pyramid in Georgia.
“I’m coming here to spread the game of basketball, the game that I love,” Howard said in Thursday’s video. “I cannot wait to start with the Black Fortress team, baby. Hey, we breaking everything down.
“Want to let y’all know this is the last time that y’all gonna see your boy on the court. But I will see you guys. You will see me for the last and first time on the court.”
Howard was selected with the No. 1 pick out of Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy in the 2004 NBA Draft by the Orlando Magic.
In eight seasons in Orlando, he led the Magic to the playoffs five straight seasons, including an NBA Finals appearance in 2009, and was named NBA Defensive Player of the Year three consecutive seasons starting with the 2008-09 campaign.
Over the course of 18 NBA seasons, which included stints with the Los Angeles Lakers (three times), Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers, he was an eight-time All-NBA selection, eight-time All-Star and five-time All-Defensive pick. He also won an NBA championship in the 2020 bubble with the Lakers.
He last played in the NBA in 2022 before beginning a globetrotting career overseas, playing for the Taoyuan Taiwan Beer Leopards of the Taiwan Professional Basketball League from 2022 to 2023. He signed with a team in Puerto Rico but never played and joined an exhibition in Dubai in 2024 and had another short stint in Taiwan.
