Dwight Howard, when all is said and done is likely to be in the NBA’s hall of fame. 3 DPOYs and a championship to his name, Dwight had done it all.
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But perhaps, his most notable accomplishment would be to deny the world of perhaps the greatest NBA Finals possible. A matchup between LeBron James and Kobe Bryant.
The hype was spectacular, the reigning King of the NBA, Bryant had just been denied his 4th title, the Celtics beat Bryant and he was coming to claim what should have been his crown.
But there was also another “King” emerging. King James, was leading Cleveland to the line and he was looking to reach the Finals for the 2nd time. And a duel was anticipated with bated breath, however, one center from Orlando had other plans.
“I’m glad I ruined it!”: Dwight Howard expresses frustration on $198 billion sportswear brand’s advert
The buildup to the supposed “Kobe vs LeBron” finals was spectacular. Nike, a sportswear brand that now has a market capitalization of $198 billion, even ran a very popular series of ads.
The puppets as they were called. And these ads made Dwight Howard mad, very mad. In a podcast, he said, “I’m glad I ruined it“, when asked about the legitimacy of the adverts.
He spoke at length about how infuriated he got watching those. Nike completely undermined the Orlando Magic. And Dwight was not about to have any of it.
Howard leads the Magic as they dismantle LeBron James and the Cavaliers
The Magic would win 4-2 and Dwight would put up a monster stat line of 25.8 points, 13 rebounds, and 1.2 blocks a game.
No more fairy tale for Nike, months of work ruined by one player’s will. Talk about a tour de force. It was Dwight’s prime and he managed to stop LeBron James from reaching the NBA Finals.
Not many players can say that. Ultimately though, Kobe Bryant and the Lakers proved too strong for Dwight and the Magic. They would win the series 4-1.
