(Photo by Jevone Moore/Icon Sportswire)
Dwight Howard redeemed himself in the eyes of Los Angeles Lakers fans.
But before he came back to help them win an NBA championship in 2020, he left the team on very bad terms, and he was far from a fan favorite at the time.
The Lakers traded for Howard and paired him with Kobe Bryant, Steve Nash, and Pau Gasol.
Kobe got hurt, and Howard failed to lead them as the bonafide superstar he was, getting ejected in the final game of a sweep in the playoffs.
Howard then left the team as a free agent to team up with James Harden on the Houston Rockets, leaving the team hanging after just one season.
Looking back, Howard admits that he did so because he was still angry after the way things went down, adding that he thought Harden was like a young version of Kobe.
“I looked at [James Harden] as a younger version of Kobe. I don’t know why I was thinking that… If I would’ve sat down and really thought about my decisions without being in my emotions, I probably would’ve stayed in LA.”
—Dwight Howard
(via @MATHHOFFA)pic.twitter.com/nBpbXomiKL
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPoints) August 4, 2023
As much as he doesn’t want to take a shot at Harden, Howard admits that leaving the Lakers at that point was his lone career regret, stating that he didn’t even know what he was thinking.
Howard and Kobe never got along, which wasn’t much of a surprise.
Kobe was a workaholic obsessed with winning and competing, whereas Howard was more relaxed.
Harden was on the rise, but as good as he was, he never achieved Kobe’s level, perhaps because he didn’t take himself too seriously either.
At the end of the day, Howard managed to win a ring dressed in Purple and Gold, but perhaps he would’ve won more if he had stayed in Southern California during his prime.
The post Dwight Howard Reveals 1 Big Regret In His NBA Career appeared first on The Cold Wire.