Dwight Howard’s retirement has proved to be brief.
In fact, it lasted less than a year.
Just six months after saying he was stepping away from basketball, the 2025 Basketball Hall of Fame inductee is headed back to the court, adding another chapter to his increasingly global post-NBA career.
Howard, who will turn 41 in December, has signed with Black Fortress Tbilisi of the Georgian Super League.
This is not Georgia, the home state of the Atlanta native. It is the country across the Atlantic, which has produced NBA players including Orlando Magic center Goga Bitadze and Los Angeles Lakers forward Sandro Mamukelashvili.
Howard made clear that he understands the distinction.
“Georgia, I’ll be on my way! Not my hometown, Atlanta, Georgia, but Tbilisi, Georgia!” Howard wrote in the caption announcing the signing.
“I saw all your flags in the comments on my last post and decided that’s where we should take the journey!”
Black Fortress secured promotion to Georgia’s top basketball division after previously playing in the country’s second-tier league.
The Georgian Super League is not regarded among the elite overseas basketball competitions, a group that includes Spain’s Liga ACB, Italy’s Serie A, Australia’s NBL and France’s LNB Elite.
Still, Howard will join the GSL as he continues to play pro basketball into his 40s.
RELATED: Bass and Raman Respond to Criticism, Highlight Their Records
“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.”
Howard announced his retirement from basketball in March, saying he wanted to step away from the game and devote more time to his family.
It continues a lengthy basketball journey for Howard since his final NBA season with the Lakers in 2021-22.
Howard joined the Taoyuan Leopards of Taiwan’s T1 League for the 2022-23 season, averaging 23.2 points, 16.2 rebounds and five assists per game.
He later played for the Philippines-based Strong Group Athletics in the 2024 Dubai International Basketball Championship and joined the Taiwan Mustangs in the Asian Tournament later that year.
Howard also signed with the Mets de Guaynabo of Puerto Rico’s Baloncesto Superior Nacional in 2024, although he never appeared in a game for the league.
His stateside basketball career continued in 2025 when he joined the Los Angeles Riot of Ice Cube’s BIG3.
Howard was selected first overall by the Magic in the 2004 NBA Draft and spent 18 seasons in the league, earning eight All-Star selections and eight All-NBA honors.
At his peak, he was one of the best players in the league and the focal point of the Magic’s 2008-09 team that made the NBA Finals.
He won three consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards from 2009 through 2011 and was named All-Defense on five occasions, including four first-team honors from 2009 to 2012.