Los Angeles Lakers: Kobe Bryant praises Dwight Howard for playing well

Dwight Howard recently spoke about talking with Kobe Bryant at the recent Los Angeles Lakers game.

One of the nice surprises for the Los Angeles Lakers this season has been the play of Dwight Howard.

After DeMarcus Cousins went down with a torn ACL in the summer, the Lakers were forced to find a replacement at the center position. Since the injury occurred well after the start of free agency, the options were limited for the Lakers. However, the Lakers look like they struck gold with Howard.

Considering his bad breakup with the Lakers the first time around and his reputation around the league the last few seasons, it was hard to know what to expect from Howard with the Lakers. So far, everything has been going well.

Against the Hawks, Howard had one of his former teammates in the building. Kobe Bryant made his first appearance at a game this season, and that always causes a nice buzz. After the game, Howard talked about his interaction with Bryant to Anthony Irwin of Silver Screen and Roll. Here’s what he had to say.

"“I didn’t even know who it was. He slapped me on the neck. I was about to elbow him, but then he said ‘hey what’s up man, you’re playing good,’” Howard said, imitating Bryant’s deep voice for that last part. “But it was cool man, I’m glad he came to the game. It was a lot of fun having him in the building. The crowd was going HAM. So, it’s great to have him.”"

Seeing Kobe and Dwight seemingly getting along better now is certainly good to see. When they were teammates, the relationship certainly didn’t seem great, and it likely played a big part in Howard leaving for Houston.

Kobe saying that Howard is playing well is also very true. Howard looks extremely engaged on both ends of the court, as he looks very motivated to help this team win. So far this season, Howard is averaging 7.0 points, 7.7 rebounds and 1.6 blocks in just over 20 minutes per game.

Howard has been an extremely efficient player for the Lakers off the bench, and has been a great duo with JaVale McGee at the center position. Hopefully, Howard will continue to impress in his second stint with the Lakers.