The death of Kobe Bryant has sent the world into a frenzy. No one expected that someone who had been by our side for decades would die a sudden and horrific death.He was a legend and an icon to all of us. This was also the case with the Los Angeles Lakers family. Dwight Howard was one of the many Lakers players who had a big influence on me.
Howard spent three stints with the Lakers. He spent his first year with the franchise in 2012. Kobe was still an integral part of the team at this point. Both of these players were on the same team. This was when they boarded it. At the time, many sources mentioned that Dwight and Kobe hated each other, and players knew this too. However, their feud was pretty public for the world to see.
Did Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard Hate Each Other?
After the Black Mamba’s death, Howard confided in his feelings. He said, “I never expected a million years from now that we would be discussing the news of Kobe’s passing. It was so sad. Man, there were nights when I cried myself to sleep just thinking about it. And it still hurts. Overwhelming. It’s kind of hard to talk about it because it makes me feel like that.”
“A lot of people thought me and Kobe hated each other. There were times when I didn’t get a chance to tell him how grateful I was.” Howard added.
Not much is known about how the rivalry between the two players began. He put his elbow in Kobe’s face when Howard grabbed a defensive rebound during a game between the Los Angeles Lakers and the Houston Rockets. It’s implying that it wasn’t tough. This was a reference to how Kobe believed Howard didn’t have what it took to perform while in LA.
The Black Mamba later apologized and called Howard a “teddy bear”. “I just wanted to show him that I’m going to do whatever it takes to help this team win all year long.”
And the best part about this was that the Lakers won the NBA title that year. We achieved what we wanted and he played an important role as well.
During the 2019-20 NBA season, Dwight Howard helped his team alongside LeBron James and Anthony Davis, averaging 7.5 points, 7.3 rebounds and 1.1 blocks in 69 games. It may be safe to assume that Howard hoped Kobe would be present at the ring ceremony that year.
