Paul Michael Levesque, also known as famous retired wrestler Triple H, has held conversations with NBA center Dwight Howard about potentially joining the WWE.
Howard, who played for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2021-22 season, remains a free agent as the 2022-23 NBA season approaches.
Triple H, who is now the head of WWE creative and executive vice president of talent relations for the WWE, revealed that the decision is now up to Howard.
“I think the ball’s in his court,” Triple H said. “It’s a funny thing, Dwight, in the conversations we had was like, ‘I really want to do this, I’m serious. I really want to do this.’ But we hear that a lot, and there’s a difference between saying, ‘I wanna do this,’ and putting the grind and doing the work to get there. [He] came by our tryouts in Nashville, was incredibly entertaining, jumping in promos by himself and with others. Incredibly entertaining, really driven to want to do this. It’s just a matter for him of he’s got a lot of things going on. So when he says, ‘Hey, I wanna give this a shot,’ he’s got my phone number. All he’s gotta do is call me, and we’ll see what can happen. If he’s willing to put in the grind and drive that guys like Logan Paul and Bad Bunny and Tyson Fury are willing to put in, then let’s go.”
While Howard does seem interested in joining the WWE, it’s possible that he is also seeing if there is a way to continue his basketball career before fully committing to wrestling.
Howard is certainly past his prime, but he has shown that he can be a valuable bench piece in the NBA. Howard played a key role for the Lakers during the 2019-20 season when they won the NBA Finals.
An eight-time All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year, Howard averaged 6.2 points, 5.9 rebounds and 0.6 blocks in 16.2 minutes per game during the 2021-22 season. He played in 60 games for the Lakers and made 27 starts.
While Howard has yet to latch onto a team this offseason, ESPN’s Adrian Wojnarowski suggested him as a possible option for the Boston Celtics after Robert Williams III underwent a procedure on his knee.
Adrian Wojnarowski on the Celtics:
“If they decide they want to add somebody, Dwight Howard is out there, LaMarcus Aldridge is out there, a player I was told they showed a little interest in this summer.”
(via @wojespn, @espnnba) pic.twitter.com/NBmu1FFOKZ
— Legion Hoops (@LegionHoops) September 20, 2022
If an NBA option doesn’t work out, it’s very possible that we’ll see Howard join the WWE at some point in his post-playing career.
