They went out and spent good money on free agent Mickael Pietrus to be their shooting guard, but he's not a very good shooter at all. The diminutive Jameer Nelson is tough as nails, but erratic as can be shooting the ball, and ineffective running the offense.

So that leaves Howard to control every game, with almost no sizeable help up front, and when they fail to win, it lands on his very young and very broad shoulders. Championship teams prove year in and year out they can't win solely dependent on a big man. Without at least one exceptional perimeter player capable of breaking down a defense off the dribble, it limits the potential of every possession.

That doesn't mean Howard's potential is limited, just the team. The future of the franchise is at the feet of general manager Otis Smith to put a crew of players on the floor for coach Stan Van Gundy to compliment Howard. Right now it creates a situation of the dumping the ball into Howard and spotting up all around him -- the boring gambling NBA way of today. If they're hitting 3-pointers, they win. If not, and Howard is counted on to hit his free throws, they'll lose.

Of course, that isn't the only reason his exposure is limited. Orlando is a small market, and he's such a low-key unassuming person, it doesn't push him into the public eye. His McDonald's commercial most likely leaves at least 80 percent of the views wondering who that big guy is.

Eventually, they'll know. For all the publicity Greg Oden has gotten despite playing in just two NBA games, Howard has played in all 336 possible since being drafted first overall in the 2004 draft out of Southwest Atlanta Christian Academy. He has outgrown his initial desire to convert every player in the NBA to his version of Christianity. And he's not the same naive kid that walked in the door after his four-plus seasons and Olympic experiences with the rest of the more savvy young stars.

But he's generally unassuming in personality and in a lot of ways, still a kid -- a huge one at that with more athleticism in such a big man than we've seen in many years. So as you think of MVP candidates when the spring rolls around, he'll be right there near the top of the list. He won't win it this year and maybe not next year, but he'll be getting a lot of votes along the way, and everybody will know who he is, whether the Magic ever win the Eastern Conference or not.