One of the more controversial players over the last 15 years from the Los Angeles Lakers has been former center Dwight Howard. Howard has seen three different stints with Los Angeles, with his second time with the team ending much better than his first. His third time with the team also saw some issues arise.
Howard was traded to the Lakers back in 2012, pairing him with Kobe Bryant and Steve Nash. This was supposed to be the next dominant era of Lakers basketball but instead, Los Angeles struggled for the majority of the season. They made the playoffs but were bounced out in the first round.
Howard ended up leaving in free agency to head to the Houston Rockets. He spent years bouncing around the league after Houston until he made his way back to the Lakers before the 2019-20 season.
Many fans didn’t like how Howard left the first time around but he helped to redeem himself by winning a title with Los Angeles. But while on Gilbert Arenas’ podcast, “Gil’s Arenas,” Howard revealed that he never wanted to be traded to the Lakers in the first place back in 2012.
“Everybody expected me and Kobe to be like the new Kobe and Shaq. And I’m just coming off injury. I’m still dealing with all the mental s— from being in Orlando. And now I got to go to L.A. and I’m playing with Kobe Bryant. I watched him play. They beat us in the Finals. One I was already pissed because I had to go to L.A. You know, nobody ever knew I didn’t want to go to L.A.”
Howard said that he wanted to go to the Brooklyn Nets so heading to Los Angeles caused him some stress. Many thought that Howard was angling to get to the Lakers when in fact, it turned out to be the complete opposite.
Bryant and Howard never really got along during their time together and it showed on the court. It took them a while to gel and until Bryant started taking over games himself, the Lakers were one of the more frustrating teams.
Howard coming back to the Lakers for the second time was an unfinished business type of situation. Winning a title with Los Angeles helped his image with the fanbase and now Howard is a loved figure.
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Source: Los Angeles Times (edited)
