Dwight Howard won't be rushing to the surgeons table anytime soon to repair the torn labrum in his shoulder. The Lakers All-Star center says, while the labrum has torn away from the bone, it is stil intact, surgery would require 6-months on the sideline and Howard says he doesn't want to experience that two seasons in a row.

From the L.A. Times:

"Six months," Howard said. "I'd rather live with it than have six months out again. That'd be two summers in a row, so I don't want that."

Instead he hopes to play through the injury. As Howard describes it, the labrum in his right shoulder is intact but torn away from the bone.

"Will it heal?" Howard said. "I hope so."

Howard undergoes regular therapy, icing it after games. During games it may numb out from time to time if he is hit in the wrong spot. At night he can't sleep on the shoulder.

Can it reattach to the bone on its own?

"Nah," said Howard. "Hopefully, it won't bother me. I'll just have to keep rehabbing it and all that stuff."

For a true repair, Howard needs surgery. Instead he hopes that the Lakers' training staff will help him manage the pain. With some rest over the off-season, inflammation may subside and Howard would carry on with an imperfect shoulder.

Image via:  Gina Ferazzi / Los Angeles Times