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DENVER, CO – FEBRUARY 12: Dwight Howard (39) of the Los Angeles Lakers high fives LeBron James (23) after dunking against the Denver Nuggets during the second quarter on Wednesday, February 12, 2020. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
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DENVER, CO – FEBRUARY 12: Dwight Howard (39) of the Los Angeles Lakers high fives LeBron James (23) after dunking against the Denver Nuggets during the second quarter on Wednesday, February 12, 2020. (Photo by AAron Ontiveroz/The Denver Post)
The Lakers officially began their NBA journey this year with the first preseason matchup. However, it did not go their way at all. While big names like LeBron James and Russell Westbrook sat out, they won’t be happy with their squad’s performance. Especially considering the fact that the loss came against the Brooklyn Nets.
While the preseason is mostly a relaxed affair, this game had one incident that took everyone by surprise. Lakers center, Dwight Howard received an early technical for a flagrant foul he committed. After that, foul calls came raining down on the big.
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SHENZHEN, CHINA – OCTOBER 12: #23 Lebron James of the Los Angeles Lakers reacts during a preseason game as part of 2019 NBA Global Games China at Shenzhen Universiade Center on October 12, 2019 in Shenzhen, Guangdong, China. (Photo by Stringer/Anadolu Agency via Getty Images)
Most players choose to take it slow during preseason games and play fewer minutes. However, for Dwight, that choice was taken away from him. Even LeBron James and Russ didn’t know how to react to seeing the veteran being fouled out.
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LeBron James and Russell Westbrook react to Dwight being fouled out
As if a loss wasn’t enough for the Lakers, they lost big man Dwight Howard halfway through the third quarter. After this, the Lakers lost their grip on the game and let the game slip out of their hands in the fourth. Looking at Dwight’s exit, LeBron and Russ couldn’t do much except laugh.
Howard was having an impressive game for the Lakers. One could even say that he was the reason the Lakers got close to extinguish the deficit in the third quarter. However, Howard got fouled out in merely 12 minutes and leaving everyone in utter disbelief.
And has fouled out of the game as well https://t.co/HKW10wKSS6 pic.twitter.com/hprmF8hXSZ
— Talkin’ NBA 🗣️ (@_Talkin_NBA) October 3, 2021
The cameras panned to LeBron James and Russell Westbrook sitting courtside. They couldn’t help but smile and laugh at Howard’s fate. Nevertheless, Howard added 11 points and 6 rebounds to the Lakers’ total before being forced off the court.
The Nets outscored them by 23 points in the fourth, allowing the Lakers to score just 16. If Dwight hadn’t been fouled out, do you think the Lakers would have won this contest, or would the outcome have remained the same? Let us know in the comments below.
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