Steve Nash and Dwight Howard went together like peanut butter and ranch during their time as teammates in Los Angeles. For his part though, Nash is happy to see Howard having a successful encore with the Lakers.
The Brooklyn Nets head coach Nash spoke on Howard before Sunday’s preseason opener against the Lakers and offered some praise.
“A willingness to accept a different approach and role,” said Nash of Howard, per Mark Medina of USA TODAY. “That’s the No. 1 thing. He’s been willing to do that.”
Nash and Howard were Lakers teammates in the 2012-13 season, gracing the cover of Sports Illustrated together with the now-infamous tagline “Now This Is Going To Be Fun.” While their collective star power was definitely there, the two never quite got on the same page as a point guard-center duo should. Among their other issues, Howard was frustrated with Nash for not getting him the ball enough while Nash was frustrated with Howard for not doing enough in the pick-and-roll. Howard would eventually leave for the Houston Rockets after just one season.
After nearly washing out of the league entirely in subsequent years, Howard has since checked his ego at the door and graciously accepted a reduced role off the bench in recent seasons. That has helped earn him both an NBA title and the renewed respect of his peers, including ex-adversaries like Nash.
