Dwight Howard Calls Reports About His Negativity In The Hawks Locker Room ‘Stupid’


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Throughout Dwight Howard‘s career, there’s one character trait that’s remained true no matter where he’s played: Dwight has never ever been able to let any past slight go. Howard has always felt the need to say the last word, whether to clear his name, or for some other reason.

Howard has done this before, whether if it was attempting to clear his name for his part in the exodus in Orlando, or why things didn’t work out in either Los Angeles or Houston. Howard’s penchant to get the last word has either muddied the waters, or done little to pacify them.

Before morning shootaround in Charlotte on Friday, reporters asked Howard if the rumors about him being a negative influence in the Atlanta Hawks locker room were true. Howard, of course, squashed the rumors and threw a few barbs back in Atlanta’s direction.

Transcript via The Atlanta Journal-Constitution:

“I think it’s stupid,” Howard told reporters. “How can you win an award for best teammate in your locker room but at the same time be the most negative guy. It doesn’t make sense, so whoever said that obviously was trying to make a story. But I think that anyone who’s been in that locker room knows who I am as a player and as a person. They know that in the locker room I’m not a guy who’s gonna bring out all the negativity through whispers, if I have anything to say I’m gonna bring it to you, so all that stuff is always false.”

To Howard’s credit, Hawks guard Malcolm Delany also tossed water on the rumors via Twitter shortly after the story broke. Howard’s truth, may, in fact, be the actual truth.

After shootaround, Dennis Schroeder told The Atlanta Journal-Constitution his take on the situation and in turn shed a little light on the situation.

I asked Schroder about Howard’s time with the team and his relationship with his ex-teammate:

“Off the court he is a good guy,” Schroder said. “He did a great job trying to bring everybody together, as always. On the court we are too different. That’s on the court. But off the court, I think (he’s) amazing.”

How are he and Howard different?

“Personalities,” Schroder said. “I’m a little different than everybody, I think. I always just try to do everything I can to win the game. I’m too competitive, sometimes.”

So perhaps it was a clash of personalities on the court, perhaps too much competitiveness or maybe the saying “you can’t go home” is in fact true. Howard has other fish to fry as the team he currently plays for, the Charlotte Hornets are 0-1 and have a stretch of games in front of them that’s daunting at best. If Howard focuses too much on the past, his present and future might end up ruined in the process.

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