I've definitely been on record as far as saying we have seen the best of Dwight. You don't get back 100 % of what you had previously after a microdiscectomy. I had the surgery at 20 years old with the sciatic nerve pain, etc.
It's brutal because of the nerve pain. Afterwards your repaired disk that was ruptured is smaller then the rest. For a guy who is 6'11 that's tough. You compensate when doing everyday things to not expose your back. Most exercises that cause compression of the vertebrae like military and squat like exercises really go out the window.
Leg strength is hard to gain without doing squats. Howard in my opinion has lost a lot of strength in his legs. The lack of explosion really shows this. Lateral quickness is reduced too. Your core just doesn't react the same anymore. I do think he will improve, but give it another year or two and something will happen to him again. The way he plays puts a lot of strain on the spine. All the leaping he does will add up and every time he lands, even on his feet, is causing compression. It's gravity. Likely a fusion is required after a while. Look at Peyton Manning for example. The surgery Howard received required a shaving of the vertebrae that is around the disk. It's thinner now and for an athlete it doesn't take too much to eventually wear that part of the spine out.
I hope LA maxes him out because without his explosion (which I don't think he ever regains completely) he is not a franchise player. Can't give him the ball in crunch time and his offensive skill set is too limited for a go to guy. His days as Defensive player of the year are likely gone as well without the consistent rim protection.