Lakers News: Dwight Howard Takes Indirect Shot at Mike D’Antoni

Dan Duangdao
2 Min Read

Orlando Magic v Los Angeles LakersBefore Dwight Howard made his decision to leave the Los Angeles Lakers for the Houston Rockets, one major concern was his relationship with head coach Mike D’Antoni.

It has been rumored for months that Howard has voiced his displeasure with D’Antoni and his perimeter-oriented offense. While Howard never asked Lakers management to fire D’Antoni, it was clear that Howard wasn’t pleased with his role in this system according to Dave McMenamin of ESPN LA:

Also, according to Mike Bresnahan of the Los Angeles Times, Howard indirectly took a shot at Mike D’Antoni while complimenting his new head coach and former Celtic, Kevin McHale:

Many Lakers fans will blame Mike D’Antoni for Howard’s departure. While he may be responsible, D’Antoni was willing to make adjustments throughout the season which eventually featured a slower tempo and more post play. The Lakers were able to climb out of a 17-25 start to make the playoffs despite an injury-plagued season.

It will be interesting to see how D’Antoni is received by the fans, but it sounds like Howard made up his mind before the Lakers meeting that he was on his way out of town.

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In case you missed it, be sure to check out our video about Dwight Howard leaving For Houston.

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Dan Duangdao was the managing editor at Lakers Nation (2013-16, 2018-20). He is currently the founder at LA Sports Media, Lake Show, Raiders Nation, Rams Nation, Kings Nation, Galaxy Nation, and MMA Rumors. Born and raised in Southern California and a lifelong Los Angeles sports and mixed martial arts fan, his first NBA game was Kobe Bryant and the Lakers against the Golden State Warriors with Michael Jordan in attendance during the 1998-99 NBA season. He was previously a contributor at HOOPSWORLD (now Basketball Insiders) and an NBA editor at ClutchPoints. Follow him on Facebook, Twitter, and Instagram: @DanDuangdao.