The working relationship between Lakers teammates Kobe Bryant and Dwight Howard is an ever-changing dynamic. It runs hot and cold and now has turned cold again since the All-Star game in Houston last weekend.
According to the New York Post, Howard put on Bryant’s uniform in the Western Conference locker room and began imitating his teammate in front of All-Star starters Blake Griffin and Chris Paul of the Clippers and Kevin Durant of the Oklahoma City Thunder.
You figure it was all good-natured, but the Post reported that a source said Howard was “joking and berating Kobe.” When Bryant entered the locker room, he said hello to everyone except Howard then “grabbed his stuff and moved as far away from Howard as he could.”
The two players appeared to have cleared the air during recent team meeting in Memphis, but Bryant seemed not to care when he was asked recently what the Lakers should do with Howard as the trade deadline nears.
On Tuesday, Lakers GM Mitch Kupchak insisted again that Dwight Howard would not be traded, according to a report by the Los Angeles Times.
"We'll continue to be on the phones and make calls, take calls and
listen, but don't anticipate anything dramatic taking place in the next
two days," he said.
It will be interesting to see how Bryant reacts to Howard’s stunt when the Lakers return to action this week. A chilly relationship could turn to a deep freeze.
