One of the most divisive players in the NBA is Golden State Warriors star Draymond Green.
As it turns out, Los Angeles Lakers big man Dwight Howard was an admitted hater of the All-Star forward.
That all changed, however, when he took a closer look.
“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.”
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
— Stadium (@Stadium) September 25, 2019
“They said he might not have been the best shooter,” Howard said. “That’s fine. He’s going to shoot with confidence when he gets that shot. He might have a shot, but instead of him shooting, he’s going to find the best shooter on the team at the right time and make the right play. I was like, ‘Man I really like that.’ And if he know the game is getting out of hand, he’ll go take three or four charges. He’ll go try to get all the rebounds. Just all the little things he did that might not show up on the stat sheet.”
It looks like Howard has come a long way in terms of his opinion of Green.
One interesting aspect to note is that what Howard seems to respect most about Green is how selfless he is on the court.
A similar kind of selflessness coming from Howard this upcoming season could be a major factor in how successful his second stint with the Lakers is.
One of the primary issues that arose during his first try with the Lakers back in the 2012-13 season had to do with his assumed desire to supplant Kobe Bryant as the go-to guy on the team.
If Howard can accept his rotational role and utilize his size and strength to help the Lakers win, chances are good he will be able to redeem himself in the eyes of Lakers fans everywhere.
