Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard have not been on the same page for most of the season, and that disconnect is carrying into Sunday’s NBA All-Star Game.
One is the personification of focus and intensity while the other is seemingly always joking before games and smiling on the court. Although both have contended that their relationship is not as fractured as the media often paints it to be, something simply has not clicked with these two superstars on the court and off.
After Sunday’s embarrassing loss to the Los Angeles Clippers, Howard was asked if the two teammates travelling together and being the only two Lakers at All-Star Weekend in Houston could potentially strengthen their bond entering the final stretch of the season.
“Hopefully,” Howard responded. “It has to get better. We have to continue to work on it.”
Howard’s response, however, differed greatly from Bryant’s response to the same question. When Bryant was asked if his relationship with Howard could use some polishing over the All-Star Weekend, Bryant dismissed the idea that he needed to connect further with his big man.
“I think it’s where it should be,” Bryant responded to the question. “The communication that I have with [Howard] is about execution and about what he needs to do on the court. That’s where it’s going to stay.”
Clearly, Bryant is content to keep a strictly business relationship with his newest superstar teammate, while Howard is looking for a deeper bond on and off the court.
For the umpteenth time this season, Bryant and Howard provided an example of not being on the same page. With less than 30 games remaining and the Lakers sitting four games below .500, that does not bode well for the remainder of the Lakers’ season.
