Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard recently revealed he has a newfound respect for Golden State Warriors forward, Draymond Green.
The Los Angeles Lakers surprised some people when they signed Dwight Howard in August to help offset the injury to DeMarcus Cousins. Not only had Howard crashed and burned in his first stint in the purple and gold, but he has garnered some negativity as well.
The Lakers will be the fifth team that he plays for in the last five years and the seventh organization that he is a part of. The Brooklyn Nets and Memphis Grizzlies both acquired him in trades but waived him before he played for either team.
Howard’s attitude and locker room demeanor have changed how teams and people view him in recent years.
Howard himself says that he has been humbled and hit rock bottom because of what has occurred recently.
Howard came to meet Lakers after dropping 25 pounds; showed his back was healthy. Lakers want him to protect rim/rebound in limited role. There was sense Howard realized he hit "rock bottom" and had been humbled. Still they'll judge him on actions, not words. He's been warned.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) August 23, 2019
Howard was able to show he was healthy and back in shape during that workout, but he wasn’t going to just be handed a contract. He had to win over some people within the organization, such as LeBron James and Anthony Davis, and he did just that.
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With the support of the two most important people on the roster, Howard was able to secure a non-guaranteed deal with the Lakers. He has to show he meant what he said, or the team can cut him without much penalty.
Training camp will be the first opportunity Howard will have to show the team that he has truly changed. No longer asked to be the focal point and star, Howard will be asked to do the dirty work inside, protecting the rim and rebounding. It is a similar role to what Tyson Chandler played last season.
However, we may have gotten our first glimpse that Howard has truly changed.
In a recent interview with Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium, Golden State Warriors forward Draymond Green was brought up.
Howard admitted that he used to hate Green and wasn’t a fan of his playing style. However, throughout the last season, Howard began to appreciate what Green brought to the floor and used him as an inspiration.
“I hated Draymond. I’m like, ‘This dude is a**.’ But I sat back this year and really watched everything he did. I was really impressed.”
— Stadium (@Stadium) September 25, 2019
NBA Insider @ShamsCharania’s sit-down with new Lakers center Dwight Howard: Using Draymond Green as inspiration. More video to come. pic.twitter.com/mtrogU6oZc
You can pretty confidently say this isn’t something Howard would have done a few years ago. He would have stuck to his original assessment of Green without blinking an eye despite the impressive resume the former Michigan State star has put together in the NBA.
If Howard can bring some of the qualities that he described Green bringing to the court, the Lakers will be ecstatic. Howard will never be the passer and playmaker that Green is, but he definitely can bring the same intensity defensively.
As long as Howard buys into the rebounding and defensive mindset that Green has, his second tenure in Los Angeles will be infinitely better than the first.