Dwight Howard may be past his prime but he’s still a very valuable player in this league.

The Atlanta Hawks were thrilled to acquire the former Defensive Player of the Year this summer. They brought Howard back to his hometown and added a center that can really help their cause on both ends of the floor.

Howard should give the Hawks a defensive presence they haven’t had in years and offensively, expectations are that he will help with the spacing.

Here’s what Paul Millsap had to say about it, according to the Atlanta Journal Constitution:

“Offensively, we have a consistent roll guy, a guy who can put pressure on the basket every time you set a pick-and-roll. He’s a guy you have to pay attention to down low. We are hoping, and I think everyone sees the vision, of the court opening up. A lot more open shots. A little more physicality. Things that we needed to get better at, I think we have.”

A threat rolling to the rim is crucial to Atlanta’s offense and Howard was once the best in the league at this facet. Now, he’s still probably an upgrade over Al Horford in that department.

The Hawks transformed into one of the best offensive teams in the league over the last few years under head coach Mike Budenholzer. That progress took a step back last season, but the acquisition of Howard may get Atlanta back on track being one of the scariest offensive teams in the NBA.