Ron Howard

Ron Howard (born November 14, 1982) is an American former professional basketball player. He held the NBA D-League all-time scoring record from March 2014 to December 2014. He is currently fifth all time in most points scored in D-League history, with 4,325 career points across seven seasons with the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

He led the Mad Ants to the 2014 D-League Championship, was named 2014 D-League MVP, was 2× NBA D-League Sportsmanship Award winner, was selected 2014 All-NBA D-League First Team, and 3× NBA D-League All-Star. Howard is also first player in D-League history to be bestowed the honor of having his number 19 retired by the Mad Ants.

High school career Howard attended Whitney Young High School in Chicago, Illinois. As a senior, he averaged 17 points and five rebounds per game while earning All-Conference, All-City, All-Area and Special Mention All-State honors.

College career As a freshman at Marquette, Howard played alongside future NBA players Dwyane Wade and Travis Diener. In 9 games, he averaged just 1.8 points per game.

In 2002, he transferred to Valparaiso and subsequently sat out the 2002–03 season due to NCAA transfer rules. On February 23, 2011, he was released by the 36ers due to an ankle injury. In 11 games, he averaged 8.8 points, 2.1 rebounds and 1.4 assists per game.

On March 14, 2011, he was re-acquired by the Mad Ants.

2011–12 season On September 20, 2011, Howard was re-acquired by the Mad Ants. On December 10, 2011, he again signed with the Milwaukee Bucks. However, he was later waived by the Bucks on December 19, 2011. He then returned to the Mad Ants.

2012–13 season In October 2012, Howard was re-acquired by the Mad Ants. On February 4, 2013, Howard was named to the Futures All-Star roster for the 2013 NBA D-League All-Star Game. On April 16, 2013, he received the 2013 NBA D-League Jason Collier Sportsmanship Award.

2013–14 season In July 2013, Howard joined the Indiana Pacers for the Orlando Summer League (did not play for them) and the NBA D-League Select Team for the Las Vegas Summer League. On September 10, 2013, he signed with the Pacers but was later waived on October 17, 2013. In November 2013, he was re-acquired by the Fort Wayne Mad Ants.

On February 3, 2014, Howard was named to the Prospects All-Star roster for the 2014 NBA D-League All-Star Game. On March 29, 2014, in a game against the Springfield Armor, Howard broke the NBA D-League career scoring record, surpassing the previous mark by Renaldo Major (4,252 points). Howard finished the game with 20 points, bringing the new record to 4,261.

On April 18, 2014, he received the 2014 NBA D-League Jason Collier Sportsmanship Award. Six days later, Howard and Othyus Jeffers were named the co-MVPs of the NBA D-League for the 2013–14 season. On April 26, the Mad Ants claimed their first D-League championship as they defeated the Santa Cruz Warriors 2–0.

Howard completed the 2013–14 season with 4,324 career points. In December 2014, Renaldo Major re-claimed the scoring record.

2015–16 season In July 2015, Howard was selected by the Seoul Samsung Thunders with the final pick in the 2015 Korean Basketball League draft. In December 2015, he parted ways with Seoul after appearing in 27 games. Over that time, he averaged 7.1 points, 1.5 rebounds and 2.0 assists per game.

2016–19 seasons On November 6, 2016, Howard signed with French team Élan Béarnais Pau-Lacq-Orthez as an injury replacement for Yannick Bokolo. He appeared in five games for the team before Bokolo returned to the line-up in early December. Later in his career, from 2016 to 2019, Howard played professionally for the Busan KT Sonicboom, Goyang Orion Orions, jeonju KCC Egis, and the Seoul Samsung Thunders.

Jersey retirement Howard's No. 19 jersey hanging in the rafters at Fort Wayne's Memorial Coliseum. On March 3, 2017, Howard had his No. 19 jersey retired by the Mad Ants, at halftime of the team's 106–94 win over the Westchester Knicks at Memorial Coliseum. Howard, who led the Mad Ants to the 2014 D-League Championship, was named 2014 Co-MVP of the league, was 2× NBA D-League Sportsmanship Award winner, 2014 All-NBA D-League First Team, and 3× NBA D-League All-Star, is the first player in D-League history to be bestowed the honor.

Personal Howard is the son of Lorri Howard and Isom Bearden. Howard graduated Valparaiso in May 2005 with a degree in communications and also studied Sports Administration in their graduate program.

Career statistics

†Denotes seasons in which Howard's team won the D-League championship

Fort Wayne Mad Ants Regular season

Playoffs