Latest news with #DwightHoward
USA Today
5 days ago
- Sport
- USA Today
Former NBA star says Lakers should bring back Dwight Howard
Former NBA star says Lakers should bring back Dwight Howard The Los Angeles Lakers' top priority this offseason is to acquire a starting-caliber center who will shut down the middle defensively, gobble up rebounds, run the floor in transition and convert dunks off lob passes. They have already been linked to a few players, most of whom are relatively young and could play alongside Luka Doncic for at least the next few years. The Lakers have had a hole at the center position for some time now, even before they traded superstar big man Anthony Davis to get Doncic in early February. For a while, some fans were clamoring for the team to bring back Dwight Howard, who helped hold down the center position during the 2019-20 season when it won the NBA championship. Former NBA star Jermaine O'Neal said on the "Nightcap" podcast that the Lakers should simply bring Howard back to plug their hole at the 5. "I don't know why the NBA is getting away from the veterans," O'Neal said. "I'd use Dwight Howard. He always seems to be in shape. "... He's one of the best defenders of all time to come down to protecting the rim and rebounding that basketball." Howard did a great job during the 2019-20 season of putting his ego aside, embracing a lesser role than what he had been used to for many years and giving Los Angeles the defense, rebounding and hustle it needed to win it all. He returned to the Purple and Gold for the 2021-22 season, and while he could still help on the boards, his defense had dramatically declined. No NBA team signed him for the following season, and he had to head to Southeast Asia to play pro ball. Howard will turn 40 years of age in December, and he simply isn't able to provide the team with what it needs at the center position. Besides, since Doncic is 26 years of age and can become a free agent next summer, it needs to acquire a young center who can play alongside him for a while, not someone who is at the end of his career.
Yahoo
18-05-2025
- Entertainment
- Yahoo
Shaquille O'Neal's Dwight Howard Gesture Turns Heads After NBA on TNT Absence
Shaquille O'Neal and Dwight Howard, two of the NBA's most dominant centers, have had a complex relationship over the years. Their feud, which began in the late 2000s, was fueled by comparisons between the two players, particularly Howard's adoption of the "Superman" nickname—a moniker originally associated with O'Neal. The tension escalated with public criticisms and jabs, leading to a prolonged period of animosity. In a surprising turn of events, the two seemingly reconciled earlier this year. During an episode of "The Big Podcast with Shaq," O'Neal publicly expressed support for Howard, referring to him as "my guy" and agreeing to accompany him during his Hall of Fame induction ceremony. This gesture suggested that past grievances had been set aside. Dwight Howard and Shaquille O'NealKyle Terada-Imagn Images However, recent events have cast doubt on the durability of their reconciliation. On Tuesday, Howard filled in for O'Neal on TNT's "Inside the NBA" show. Upon O'Neal's return the following day, he was seen sanitizing the desk where Howard had sat, a move that many interpreted as a subtle jab. Advertisement NBA on TNT took to social media to share the moment, and fans were quick to share their reactions. "I knew he was going to do this," one fan wrote. "Shaq is extra man. He knows that table was clean before he got there," another fan added. "Didn't they just do a pod together and squashed the beef?" a third fan posted. "Shaq so corny for the Dwight Howard hate man," another fan said. "Shaq really hate Dwight tho... that's wild," one fan mentioned. While the desk-cleaning incident may have been intended as a lighthearted gesture, it has reignited discussions about the true state of relations between the two former Los Angeles Lakers champions. Related: Lakers Fans Upset Over Giannis Antetokounmpo News Related: Tyrese Haliburton Turns Heads With LeBron James Words After Cavaliers' Loss to Pacers
Yahoo
15-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Dwight Howard Sends Clear Message After Replacing Shaquille O'Neal on TNT
On Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers secured their second straight Eastern Conference Finals berth, by eliminating the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games in the second round of the playoffs. They did it thanks to 31 points on 10-of-15 field-goal shooting and eight assists from Tyrese Haliburton. Advertisement The Pacers will await the winner of the New York Knicks-Boston Celtics series, currently led by the Knicks three games to one. On TNT's "Inside the NBA," Dwight Howard sat in for Shaquille O'Neal, and Howard sent a clear message with a post on X. "Yall gotta have me and my big brother up here next 😂 @NBAonTNT," Howard wrote. Howard and O'Neal have had a feud that goes back several years in the middle of Howard's playing career. O'Neal would often criticize Howard because he felt Howard wasn't reaching his potential and should've been a much greater and more prolific player. In his 18-year career, Howard finished with career averages of 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks a game. During his prime, he was a dominant rebounder and defender, and he led the NBA in rebounding average five times and was named the Defensive Player of the Year three straight times. Former Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard (12)Howard Smith-Imagn Images He won a championship in 2020 as a reserve with the Los Angeles Lakers after years of bouncing around from team to team amidst accusations of being a self-centered diva. Advertisement After his final season in the NBA, Howard spent the 2022-23 season with the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League in Taiwan. He was recently voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. Related: Steve Kerr Reveals Unfortunate Jimmy Butler Feeling Amid Playoff Deficit
Yahoo
12-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
LeBron James' Former Teammate Makes Telling Cavaliers Statement Amid Game 4 Blowout
During the Cleveland Cavaliers' Game 4 blowout to the Indiana Pacers on Sunday, one of LeBron James' former teammates took a shot at the No. 1 seed in the East. James, who led the Cavaliers to the 2016 championship against the Golden State Warriors, and the Los Angeles Lakers lost to the Minnesota Timberwolves in five games in the first round of this year's playoffs. Advertisement Some thought Cleveland could win it all this year without James since Donovan Mitchell and Co. are the first seed in the East. However, Cleveland is one loss away from being eliminated from the 2025 playoffs. James' former teammate, Dwight Howard, thought the Cavaliers were a frontrunner for the title. James and Howard were teammates on the Lakers for two seasons (2019-20 and 2021-22). The NBA legends won the 2020 championship together against the Miami Heat at the Walt Disney World bubble. Howard was recently named a finalist for the Hall of Fame Class of 2025, while James will be a first-ballot Hall of Famer once he retires from the NBA. Advertisement The leading scorer in NBA history, James can become an unrestricted free agent this offseason by declining his 2025-26 player option with the Lakers. Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James looks on.© Soobum Im-Imagn Images Not only did the Cavaliers lose Game 4, but Mitchell also hurt his left ankle and didn't play in the second half. Game 5 of the series is on Tuesday in Cleveland. Indiana won Games 1 and 2 at Rocket Arena. It will be intriguing to see if Mitchell plays in Game 5 and how the Cavaliers will respond after getting embarrassed in Game 4 on national television. Related: Donovan Mitchell Reveals Team He Wanted Jazz to Trade Him to in 2022
Yahoo
06-05-2025
- Sport
- Yahoo
Celtics vs. Magic: Will Boston be tested early in repeat bid? Series keys, schedule and prediction
The Eastern Conference's second-seeded Boston Celtics (61-21) will face the seventh-seeded Orlando Magic (41-41) in the first round of the 2025 NBA playoffs. The two franchises have not met in the playoffs since the 2010 Eastern Conference finals, when Paul Pierce and Co. ousted Dwight Howard's Magic. What we know about Boston For starters, the Celtics won the 2024 NBA championship. And they brought just about everyone back, including the best six-man rotation in basketball. It was an expensive endeavor but a necessary one if they wanted to give themselves the best chance to defend a title (or, rather, "attack" their title defense). And they did. As far as regular-season title defenses go, this was the best one since those Golden State Warriors of last decade, the team that won three titles in five straight trips to the NBA Finals. The Celtics are as battle-tested a roster as we have seen in some time, having reached six conference finals in the past eight years. They have Jayson Tatum, who is better than ever, and ever was pretty damn good. He averaged 26.8 points (45/34/81 shooting splits), 8.7 rebounds and a career-high six assists per game and should finish top-four in the MVP race. He is essentially a point guard and a great one at 6-foot-9, if not taller, and he can score every which way. There really isn't anything he cannot do on the court, including on defense. They have Jaylen Brown, the reigning Finals MVP. He was an All-Star again this season, averaging a 22-6-5 on 46/32/76 shooting splits. He can do almost everything Tatum can do and sometimes more, especially on defense. The concern now is his ailing right knee, as he reportedly received pain management injections. It has clearly been bothering him in recent weeks, though he insists he can play through this. They have Derrick White and Kristaps Porziņģis and Jrue Holiday and Al Horford, a collection of veterans, each as talented as the next. There is no weak link in the mix. Even Horford at 38 years old can hold his own on both ends of the floor. Add Payton Pritchard, the presumptive Sixth Man of the Year, to the mix, along with Sam Hauser and Luke Kornet, who know their roles, and this is as deep a team as the East has. What we know about Orlando It started well. Paolo Banchero and Franz Wagner, two rising stars, drove a hot start. The defense rated as the East's best, sustaining an offense that could not generate points in the half-court. But the Magic had these two young swingmen, playing like All-NBA candidates, and with that they deserved our attention. Weeks into the season Banchero tore his right abdomen muscle. And in a strange twist of fate Wagner tore his a month later. They would not play together again until late January, when the Magic, after their 15-7 start, were fighting at .500. The defense remained a top-five unit in the NBA, but that offense ... yuck. It was worse than everyone but the Washington Wizards, producing 1.07 points per possession. In the meantime, Orlando lost Jalen Suggs, its third-best player, and Mo Wagner, one of its best rotational players, to season-ending injuries. Both are big losses. For as frenetic as Suggs can be on defense, he is a calming force on offense. When Banchero, Franz Wagner and Suggs played together, the Magic were +7.8 points per 100 possessions. Without him those same lineups are only marginally better than opponents. Nobody could enjoy the increase in available touches more than Cole Anthony. He is unafraid, which gets him into as much trouble as he gets Orlando out of. The progress of Anthony Black in his second season has been a welcome development. His offense is inconsistent, too, a product of his age. Cory Joseph has not been a veteran answer to anyone's backcourt issues this decade, and Orlando has been no different. When the Magic signed Kentavious Caldwell-Pope to a hefty contract in the offseason, they envisioned him as the final piece to their puzzle, only it was never finished. It is hard to be a connector on a team that does not have all of its pieces to connect. KCP made it harder still, shooting below league average. Wendell Carter Jr. remained a constant in the frontcourt. Jonathan Isaac is a defensive menace there. It is the offense that cannot get unstuck from the mud. Without a dynamic two-way guard and without a go-to option at center, too much is placed on Banchero's and Wagner's shoulders. Since neither can shoot (a combined 28.4% on pull-up 3s), and none of their safety valves can be consistently relied upon to shoot (the Magic are the worst catch-and-shoot team in the league), offense is especially hard to come by in this era. This embedded content is not available in your region. Head-to-head The Magic won their regular-season series with the Celtics, 2-1. Take little from their three meetings. In the first, neither Banchero nor Wagner played for Orlando. Both were resting their ailing abdomens. Nor did Tatum (illness) play for Boston. The Magic needed a 15-point comeback and a game-saving 3-pointer from rookie Tristan da Silva — their leading scorer on the night — to edge the Celtics, 108-104. Wagner missed their second game, too, and the Celtics laid a whooping on the Magic, 121-94, as Boston's starting lineup combined for 94 points. The defending champions shot 45.9% on 37 3-point attempts. Both Banchero and Wagner were back for the third, but the Celtics rested everyone. Rookie Baylor Scheierman led them in scoring. Orlando's stars did not even need 30 minutes apiece in a 96-76 win. Matchup to watch Jaylen Brown could be at less than full strength against the Magic. (Photo by) The forwards Rarely do we see both teams' best two players match up with each other, but we may here. In their lone meeting, Banchero spent the bulk of his time on Tatum and held up fairly well when Tatum was not pick-and-rolling into more advantageous matchups in a 30-point performance. Both are among the NBA's strongest power forwards, at least among the new type that can create, well ... everything. They are Duke-bred to be great. One was a No. 1 overall pick. The other should have been. What theater. Wagner and Brown never faced each other during the regular season, but Wagner defended few more people than he did Brown last season. They are creative wings of their own right. They will get to their spots and organize others into theirs just as easily. It is just that Brown has no shortage of outlets, as, in addition to Tatum, White and Holiday and Porziņģis or Horford are waiting at the arc for an open 3. Crunch-time lineups Boston Celtics The Celtics could close with their starting lineup of Tatum, Brown, White, Holiday and Porziņģis, though that five-man unit is somehow a -2 over their limited 357 minutes on the season — for a 61-win team. Celtics head coach Joe Mazzulla has felt more comfortable with Horford in place of Porziņģis, banking on the added defensive efficiency, and he has been right. That group is among the league's most productive overall (+17.7 points per 100 possessions) and in the fourth quarter (+20.3 points per 100 possessions). Orlando Magic Orlando's most-used fourth-quarter lineup since the All-Star break is its starting group: Joseph, Caldwell-Pope, Banchero, Wanger and Carter, who are a healthy +11.5 points per 100 possessions over 216 minutes together this season. But when push came to shove in the Magic's play-in game against the Atlanta Hawks, head coach Jamahl Mosley turned to the younger Black in place of Joseph in a lineup that has not had as much success (-17.7 points per 100 possessions over 66 minutes) but might have a higher ceiling. Prediction: Celtics in four They have too much firepower. Tatum and Brown, even at 80%, are better than Banchero and Wagner at this point. And then there is Boston's depth. How are the Magic going to score with them? Series betting odds (Via BetMGM) Boston Celtics (-10000) Orlando Magic (+2200) Series schedule (all times Eastern) Game 1: Sunday @ Boston (3:30 p.m., ABC) Game 2: Wed., April 23 @ Boston (7 p.m., TNT) Game 3: Fri., April 25 @ Orlando (7 p.m., ESPN) Game 4: Sun., April 27 @ Orlando (7 p.m., TNT) *Game 5: Tue., April 29 @ Boston (TBD) *Game 6: Thu., May 1 @ Orlando (TBD) *Game 7: Sat., May 3 @ Boston (TBD) *if necessary More series previews East: Cavaliers-Heat • Celtics-Magic • Knicks-Pistons • Pacers-Bucks West: Thunder-Grizzlies • Rockets-Warriors • Lakers-Wolves • Nuggets-Clippers
