Getty Dwight Howard at All-Star weekend
In Saturday’s NBA Slam-Dunk contest here at the United Center in Chicago, Dwight Howard had Jameer Nelson—his longtime though, until recently, estranged friend from their days together with the Magic—deliver him the Superman cape that he wore during the contest.
That was not his original plan, though. Back when he first mapped out the dunk, it was Lakers star Kobe Bryant, not Nelson, who was to deliver the cape. Once he attached the cape, the idea was, he would rip off the “S” emblem on his Superman jersey to show No. 24 below it, in red numbers on a gold diamond.
That would be Howard’s way of honoring Bryant, who had clashed with Howard during the one season they played together, in 2012-13. Howard later worked to gain Bryant’s respect and having Bryant involved in the dunk would have been a public showing of their reformed relationship.
Bryant, Howard said, had agreed to participate.
“That was gonna be a lot of fun,” Howard said.
Howard’s Dunk: A Tribute of a Different Kind
Instead, sadly, the dunk became a tribute of a different kind. Bryant died on January 26 in a helicopter crash in Calabasas, Calif., while taking his 13-year-old daughter, Gianna, to a basketball tournament. Gianna and seven others (John, Keri and Alyssa Altobelli, Sarah and Payton Chester, Christina Mauser and Ara Zobayan) perished along with Bryant. Investigators have yet to release a definitive cause of the accident.
Howard wanted to use the dunk as a way to honor Bryant’s memory. As soon as he tore off the “S” emblem, the crowd in the United Center began chanting for Bryant. Howard, nervous and eager to make sure the dunk went down, said he tuned out the crowd.
“I really couldn’t hear,” Howard said. “I was so focused saying, ‘I got to get this dunk down.’ But it was a lot of fun to be in the atmosphere.”
Howard said he had a few memorials for Bryant planned but though he scored a 49 of 50 on the Bryant-themed dunk, he was eliminated in the first round of the competition.
“It was kind of rushed,” Howard said. “But this season and the rest of our career, we are going to make sure that we represent that purple and gold the right way. We know Kobe is watching over us. We’re grateful, thankful that he gave us some great knowledge. Very appreciative of the time we got to spend with Kobe Bryant.”
Howard’s Long Dunk-Contest History
Howard, of course, earned a significant chunk of his fame in the Dunk Contest. He competed in the contest in 2007, 08 and 09 and was the dunk champ in 2008. It was during those contests that Howard first used the Superman persona, including a phone booth and—in 2009—a hydraulic lift that allowed him to dunk on a 12-foot rim.
At 34 years old, Howard was attempting to become the oldest dunk contest winner in history. Instead, the contest was won, in a controversial decision, by Miami’s Derrick Jones Jr.
“I was going to put my arms in the rim,” Howard said, when asked what he did not get a chance to show. “I couldn’t wait to do it. But it’s OK. I’m happy to be here. It is a great moment for the two guys that were in the finals. They put on a great show, and everybody wondered what they are going to do.”
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