It was business as common for Dwight Howard before a Lakers played a Oklahoma City Thunder on Friday night during Staples Center.
For Howard, that meant a throng of reporters around him, laughter, storytelling, observations about life and review that ranged from video games, Twitter, a stupidity of his purported quarrel with Kobe Bryant to a core strength of hockey players.
And all and anything in between.
It was a cut of Howard a open frequency sees or hears about, mostly given these pre-game, locker-side visits are typically spontaneous and non-basketball related.
Basically it’s only an entertaining, cooperative Howard holding justice with whoever decides to dump by and vouchsafing them into his universe for a small while.
As Howard intent a throng – and you’d be astounded how many questions he asked as opposite to a other approach around – it dawned on me this positively wasn’t a function of a man who didn’t suffer his new vicinity or teammates.
Nor did he seem like a man who recently came to blows with Bryant, his luminary teammate, or someone disturbed that his shoulder damage was poignant adequate to keep him on a sideline most longer.
Finally, he wasn’t behaving like someone who was prepared to quit on a Lakers’ deteriorate that’s left downhill faster than a bullion award Olympic skier.
They took a five-game losing strain into Friday’s diversion opposite a Thunder, and deliberation a peculiarity of a
opponent and a deficiency of Howard, Pau Gasol and Jordan Hill, a chances of them winning were about as good as a USC football group commencement subsequent deteriorate No. 1 in a country.
Point being, if you’re awaiting a Howard with one feet still in L.A. and a other already stepping out of city as a giveaway representative this summer, we competence be surprised.
Despite how badly a Lakers have played, a damage problems, a struggles to rise group chemistry and a unconstrained play that comes along with personification for a Lakers, Howard seems like a flattering calm guy.
Either that, or he’s a unequivocally good actor.
With all due honour to Howard, carrying seen some of his behaving efforts, I’m gentle observant he isn’t putting adult a front.
Fact is, notwithstanding a hilly start, he seems excellent with being here, he gets along with his teammates, and he and Bryant are on good terms.
As he put it Friday, Bryant’s been a crony for some-more than 5 years and zero that’s happened given apropos teammates changes that.
Funny thing is, no matter how most he tries to get that summary opposite a some-more push-back he seems to get.
The “fight” with Bryant is a good example.
Howard insists it never happened, citing all sorts of opposite justification opposite an rumpus – including a miss of disciplinary response from a Lakers and how, had he truly left after Bryant, is there unequivocally anyone vigourous adequate to indeed stop him from accomplishing his objective?
Considering Howard is a biggest, strongest, baddest dude in a Lakers’ locker room, it’s a indicate well-taken.
“It didn’t happen!” Howard announced adamantly.
Problem is, people trust what they want. And for each Howard rejection there is a maverick not shopping it.
It didn’t matter that he tweeted a print of himself and Bryant derisive their ostensible fight, with a grinning Lakers manager Mike D’Antoni in a center of his dual stars sanctimonious to apart them.
It doesn’t matter that he keeps observant zero happened and that he and Bryant are on good terms.
When people wish to trust something, they trust it.
Howard has been around prolonged adequate to know that diversion – not that it doesn’t bug him how some people contend and write whatever they please.
He wondered Friday if there were laws opposite copy flat-out lies, or because someone didn’t have a pleasantness to during slightest ask him before using with a story if it indeed happened.
Some of a old-timers got a bit of a grin out of that, bargain a manners we were neat underneath though noticing a appearance of a internet and amicable media and 24-hour news cycles has resulted in a decrease of correct custom by some in a business.
Howard mostly laughed it off, a energy of his certain appearance in full outcome as usual.
It’s a same confident position he’s taken to understanding with a Lakers’ struggles.
Despite it all, he seems like a happy dude.
It doesn’t meant he doesn’t care; it’s only that he copes with a smile.
Maybe it’s all an act. Maybe Howard is stealing a sour displeasure and it’ll all brief out when he bolts a Lakers as a giveaway agent.
Maybe.
But we doubt it.
vincent.bonsignore@dailynews.com
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