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Dwight Howard Reveals Truth Behind Kobe Partnership

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Nick Wright | Last updated Dec 22, 2024 2:13 PM ET

Dwight Howard's tumultuous 2012-13 season with the Los Angeles Lakers remains one of the NBA's most fascinating "what-if" scenarios. In a recent appearance on Gil's Arena, Howard shed new light on his mindset during that ill-fated partnership with Kobe Bryant, revealing he never wanted to join the Lakers in the first place.

"I didn't want to go to the Lakers because I wanted to beat the Lakers," Howard explained, referencing Orlando's Finals loss to Los Angeles. "They just beat us in the Finals. So in my mind I was like 'why would I just go to the team that just beat us?'"

The circumstances around Howard's arrival in Los Angeles were already complicated. After leading the Magic to the Finals and winning three straight Defensive Player of the Year awards while averaging 20.6 points, 14.5 rebounds, and 2.9 blocks from 2007-2012, Howard's relationship with Orlando had deteriorated. His preferred destination was Brooklyn, but he instead found himself shipped to a Lakers team expecting him to form the next great Lakers big man-guard duo with Bryant.

"It's difficult playing with Kobe," Howard said. "One, it's the expectation, you know, winning. Two is like, sh--, everybody expected me and Kobe to be like the new Kobe and Shaq."

The pressure was immense, and Howard wasn't physically or mentally prepared for it. Coming off back surgery and still processing his Orlando exit, he struggled to meet the Lakers' championship expectations. "I'm just coming off injury, I'm still dealing with all the mental sh-- from being in Orlando, and now I've got to go to LA and I'm playing with Kobe Bryant," Howard reflected.

Despite Howard averaging 17.1 points and leading the league with 12.4 rebounds per game, the Lakers barely made the playoffs with a 45-37 record. The experiment ended after one season when Howard signed with Houston in free agency, a decision that made him a villain in Los Angeles for years.

Howard's revelations add yet another layer to one of the most disappointing superteam attempts in NBA history. A squad featuring Howard, Bryant, Steve Nash, and Pau Gasol seemed unstoppable on paper, but injuries, chemistry issues, and Howard's reluctance to be there in the first place proved too much to overcome.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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