Dwight Howard was introduced as a member of the Lakers in a press conference on Friday.

"It's unreal," Howard said.  "It's finally happened. It hasn't hit me yet. But I'm just happy to be here. I want to make the best out of it."

Howard was asked to compare himself to the Lakers' long history of great centers, dating back to George Mikan and continuing with Wilt Chamberlain, Kareem Abdul-Jabbar and Shaquille O'Neal.

"I want to be great in my own right and I want to write my own history," Howard. "Today is the first day of that history. I get a clean slate and an opportunity to start over."

Howard had become the biggest story in the NBA off the court over the past nine months, but his image has undoubtedly taken a hit in the process.

"I have a second chance," Howard said. "I'll make the best of it. I'm not going to change who I am because of what happened in the past. I learned a lot. I'm still young. I'm going to make mistakes. I'm going to bump my head. I'm sure you bumped your head a lot. But you've grown from it. I have the opportunity to do the same thing. This is a perfect time."