SANTA CRUZ, Calif. – It was less than four years ago that Josh Howard earned $10 million for the NBA season. He was playing for the Washington Wizards in the third season of a four-year, $40 million extension the Dallas Mavericks had given him. A former All-Star, the 2003 ACC Player of the Year at Wake Forest, and still just 30 years old, Howard appeared to have a handful of productive NBA seasons still ahead of him.

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Then he tore the anterior cruciate ligament in his left knee. Two years later, he suffered a meniscus tear in the same knee. Nine months after that, he tore the ACL in his right knee.

All of which helps explain why Howard is currently playing for the Austin Toros in the NBA's Development League, making $25,000 for the season.

"Beggars can't be choosy is what my grandma said," Howard told Yahoo Sports. "I'm just happy to be out there playing.

"I love the game. Ultimately, this is a game I played as a kid to get outside of the house away from grandma and mama – 'You ain't going to make me vacuum today. I'm going to play ball.' "

Howard said he was "at his lowest" after injuring his knee for the second time. Rather than attempt yet another comeback from knee surgery, Howard could have opted to retire. He said he's invested well and saved money after listening to Mavericks owner Mark Cuban.

"Cuban gave me a lot of good advice," Howard said. "I really wasn't a big spender."

Howard, however, never really considered retiring. He chose instead to join Antoine Walker as the only former NBA All-Stars to join the D-League. Playing in Austin also has kept him close to his two kids and a stepson, who live less than a three-hour drive away in Dallas.

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"Those tears dried up quick," Howard said. "I'm a fighter. I will never quit. I want to go out on my own terms, not nobody cutting me, me walking out saying, 'I'm done.' "

Howard's agent, Derrick Lafayette, warned him transitioning to the D-League from the NBA wouldn't be easy – on or off the court. Long used to NBA charter flights – Cuban once used his private plane to take Howard to the 2007 All-Star Game – Howard and the Toros flew Southwest Airlines (with a connecting stop in San Diego) to Santa Cruz for a couple of games. Long bus rides also aren't uncommon.

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