Dwight Howard is one of the defining names in modern basketball.
Advertisement
Peak Dwight was a force akin to the greatest centers to play the game. Howard remains the only player to win 3 consecutive Defensive Player of the Year awards and was arguably second only to LeBron James in NBA player rankings during his peak.
Howard was drafted #1 by the Orlando Magic in 2004. Dwight quickly became their franchise centerpiece and spent 8 years which included an NBA Finals appearance with the Magic.
However, once his stint with Magic ended dramatically in 2012, Howard’s career met with a downhill trajectory. Injuries and issues with co-stars relegated Dwight from superstar status in the blink of an eye.
Off-the-court issues also began to pile up, affecting Dwight further. Howard was the father of five children; all with different women and noise surrounding the same had started to pile too.
In 2010, Howard was involved in a lawsuit with Royce Reed, a woman he was involved with romantically. Reed and Dwight reached a settlement in 2010 which meant that legally, Reed could no longer discuss the father of her child.
Reed, however, broke the settlement deed, and the breach was estimated at $500 million by Dwight’s camp.
How did Royce Reed commit a breach valued at $500 million against Dwight Howard?
Royce Reed was a participant in Basketball Wives, a popular 10-series reality show which is still running. During her time on air, Reed allegedly mentioned Dwight and his parental status at least 11 times.
This amounted to a breach of the settlement deed between Dwight and Reed at least on 11 different occasions. Considering the fact that this affected Dwight’s reputation during the peak of his powers, the issue was bound to be lucrative.
Even then $500 million seems like a stretch. The amount claimed by Dwight’s camp is way beyond what Howard has even earned in his career. Dwight’s legal team arrived at the figure owing to the fact that over a million viewers were now aware of the controversial parenthood that Dwight had opted to hide.
The issue dragged on in court. Eventually, Reed and Dwight agreed to settle the matter outside of court for $500,000, a prudent decision for all involved.
Dwight may not have gotten his $500 million. But the fact that the matter was resolved would have been something that contributed to Dwight’s peace of mind.
Howard also saw a career resurgence as a role player, subsequently. Dwight even won himself a ring during his stint with LeBron James and the Lakers. An omission from the NBA 75 followed, but a ring ought to compensate some of that pain.
