In case Dwight Howard didn’t know, Kobe Bryant and the Los Angeles Lakers have fans all around the globe.
Think of it as an extended entourage. You mess with the Lakers or Kobe in the states, and you’ll inevitably feel the worldwide wrath. Superman officially knows what I’m talking about.
His Houston Rockets journeyed to the Philippines to play an exhibition game against the Indiana Pacers. It was the first-ever NBA bout played in the Philippines. And Howard didn’t fare so well, finishing with nine points, three rebounds, four turnovers and five fouls in just under 24 minutes of action.
As if that wasn’t enough to ruin Howard’s day, fans reportedly booed him while also chanting Kobe Bryant’s name, according to InterAKTV’s Mikkel Bolante (h/t Bleacher Report):
For most of his visit to the Philippines, Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard received a lot of love from basketball-crazy Filipino fans.
But Howard also had a taste of backlash for his decision to leave the popular Los Angeles Lakers franchise in the offseason.
During the Rockets’ preseason game on Thursday night against the Indiana Pacers, Howard was on the receiving end of some boos from the crowd at the Mall of Asia Arena.
There were also scattered chants of “Kobe! Kobe!” in reference to Lakers superstar Kobe Bryant, with whom Howard had a clash of personality during his one season stint in Los Angeles.
Tough luck for Howard. He’s three months removed from choosing the Rockets over the Lakers, and still this feud won’t die. Which isn’t surprising. Basketball fans, players and teams—the entire NBA sphere, really—holds grudges. Howard’s continued exposure to ridicule and general hate likely won’t die down until after the Rockets meet the Lakers for the first time on Thursday, November 7th.
Even then, there’s no guarantee Superman is able to escape the backlash he’s presently receiving. It’s not going to die entirely after that contest no matter what happens. A Lakers victory might quell some of the cries coming out of Hollywood, but arguments as to why D12 made the wrong decision would soon follow.
This taxing debacle will die even less if Kobe isn’t back in the Lakers’ lineup in time to battle his former teammate. History implies he will be, that he’s circled that date on his calendar and already ordered a can of ass whoopin’ on Howard’s behalf. But this is a 35-year-old Kobe now. Not to say he’s too refined to resort to such measures—he’s not. He is, however, battling against Father Time in his Achilles recovery. There’s a good chance he won’t be ready to play come Los Angeles’ sixth game of the season.
Howard himself doesn’t return to the Staples Center to face the Lakers until Wednesday, February 19, at which point he’ll receive a welcome similar to the one he garnered against the Orlando Magic’s faithful last season. He’ll have played the Los Angeles Clippers there by then, but that won’t be the same, though there will be plenty of jeering.
Picture the reaction he’s going to get in February, when he returns to the scene of the crime. To face a Lakers team that was willing to give him the world. To face a presumably healthy and angry, and therefore motivated, Kobe. That night will make Howard’s jaunt in the Philippines seem like a cakewalk.
Lakers fans will have had seven months to move past it by then, and could be over the whole ordeal. More likely, they’ll be prepared to shower him with boos, cat cat calls and profanity-laced verbal jabs. Count on that, Dwight. Then brace yourself, because unlike Kathy Griffin’s career, this isn’t over yet.
Dan Favale is a firm believer in the three-pointer as well as the notion that defense doesn’t always win championships. His musings can be found at Bleacherreport.com in addition to TheHoopDoctors.com. Follow @danfavale on Twitter for his latest posts and all things NBA.
