Dwight Howard reveals how former teammate Kobe Bryant would have reacted to his performance on ‘DWTS’
Dwight Howard believes Kobe Bryant would have fully supported his new “Dancing With the Stars” gig.
After Making her ballroom debut On Tuesday night, the NBA star spoke exclusively to Page Six about what he thinks his former teammate would have thought if he joined season 33 of the dance competition series.
“I think he would love it,” Howard said of Bryant. “We’ve been competitors, we’ve watched each other, we’ve played against each other in the (NBA) Finals, we’ve played on the same team, we’ve won the Olympics together. I’m pretty sure he would be very proud.”
Bryant died in January 2020 at the age of 41, following a tragic helicopter accident that also resulted in the deaths of his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, and several others.
The NBA legend was Howard’s teammate during the 2012-2013 season, when they both played for the Los Angeles Lakers. took home the gold while representing Team USA at the 2008 Olympic Games.
While the two notoriously He had his ups and downs on the court.They were apparently on good terms at the time of Bryant’s untimely death. By ESPNThey were even planning to meet for a dunk contest during All-Star weekend in February 2020.
To this day, Howard fondly remembers the advice Bryant gave him over the years.
She told Page Six she plans to bring those same words of encouragement to the ballroom.
“(He said), ‘Always keep the main thing, the main thing,’” Howard shared. “And right now, ‘Dancing With the Stars’ is the main thing. So, with that being said, every day that we’re on the dance floor, we treat it like that. And we have fun doing it.”
While Bryant never competed on “Dancing With the Stars,” he showed plenty of love for the dance competition show over the years.
In 2010, “Dear Basketball” filmmaker and then-Lakers coach Phil Jackson He made an appearance in season 11 when NBA superstar Rick Fox competed with Cheryl Burke.
“It was crazy, I’ll never forget it. They were hard to get and this was our only chance,” Burke recalled of that experience, while speaking to Page Six via Zoom on Wednesday.
“Kobe was very sweet and I could see how Rick looked up to him. He was the best at what he did,” he added. “I also look up to athletes like him who have dedicated their lives to becoming experts at their craft.”
In 2015, Bryant skipped an important NBA playoff game (and the NBA draft lottery) to attend the live taping of the dance competition show’s Season 20 finale. He posed for several photos in the ballroom at the time, including a snapshot with Val Chmerkovskiy moments after winning the mirrorball trophy with Rumer Willis.
Bryant also showed his support for his teammates Derek Fisher and Lamar Odom when they competed during Season 25 and Season 28, respectively.
“On the list of all the teammates we’ve played with, I have to say yours was not at the top of the list as far as guys that would be on ‘Dancing With the Stars,’” Bryant said. he joked in a surprise message to Fisher which aired on “Good Morning America” in 2017.
“I was very surprised… (but) that being said, I wish you the best. Do what you have to do, my friend. Get another championship.”
On the current season of “DWTS,” Howard, 38, has been paired with professional dancer Daniella Karagach. The two made their debut on premiere night dancing salsa to Montell Jordan’s “This Is How We Do It.”
The energetic, lift-filled routine received a combined score of 22/30 from judges Carrie Ann Inaba, Derek Hough and Bruno Tonioli, putting them at the top of the leaderboard.
“Dani is amazing. She calmed me down so much before the storm,” Howard told Page Six moments after finishing their first live show together. “She kept checking on me, making sure I was OK. She did amazing.”
Karagach, 31, previously won the Season 30 Mirrorball trophy with fellow NBA star Iman Shumpert in 2021.
“I talked to him and Iman said Dwight is going to be the best partner I’ve ever had,” the professional dancer enthused, to which Howard responded, “That’s a big deal. I’m willing to do whatever it takes to hold that mirror ball.”
While Karagach and Shumpert had to contend with a significant height difference (the dancer is 5’3″ and the athlete 6’4″), it’s nothing like what she and Howard are facing this season.
The 1.80-meter basketball player and his pro partner revealed how they are working around that in rehearsals. The biggest challenge, Karagach told us, is the “basics” of getting into the frame.
“If it goes into full frame mode, for example, I can’t reach it,” he explained as he showed us the image on camera. “We’ll just have to adjust it in a way that works for us and customize it.”
“Dancing With the Stars” airs Tuesdays at 8 p.m. ET/PT on ABC and Disney+.
