Watch: Dwight Howard once showed off his Chinese in commercial showcasing him living his best life in Taiwan
Dwight Howard was having the best time of his life in Taiwan. The former LA Lakers star appeared in several commercials. In one of the ads, Howard spoke Chinese and captioned the video saying he didn't want to speak in English. Here's the clip of the commercial:
Howard, a three-time DPOY, moved to Taiwan to continue his basketball career last offseason. He didn't have many offers in the NBA, leading to his departure overseason. Howard had a solid stint.
He averaged 23.2 points, 16.2 rebounds and 5.0 assists per game across 20 appearances for Taoyuan Leopards in the T1 League. He was named an All-Star, All-Star Game Most Famous Player, All-Defensive First Team member and Most Valuable Import.
However, Dwight Howard's tenure in Taiwan didn't end well. Howard departed after the Leopards offered him a new deal with a 65% pay cut. The Leopards didn't play well, despite Howard's efforts, who was injury prone all year.
Howard said he felt disrespected by how the Leopards' treated him after the season he had, saying:
“I felt like that was very disrespectful. I felt like I brought value to the team. I was very disappointed… I felt like I deserved more.”
Leopards CEO Chang Chien-Wei claimed the contract was based on the team's results, which would be mutually beneficial for both parties. As of now, Howard remains a free agent.
Dwight Howard finds himself in the middle of a controversy as he eyes NBA return
Dwight Howard has been vocal about his desire to return to the NBA after a one-year stint in Taiwan. The former three-time DPOY last played for the LA Lakers in the league but didn't seem to have generated much interest. At 37, Howard is far from his prime but is a serviceable option as a backup center.
He showed that in his three short stints with the Lakers in their championship run in 2019-20, the Sixers in 2020-21, and the Lakers again in their 2021-22 season. Here's what Howard said about his goal of an NBA return:
“Well, I personally in my opinion believe that you have an upper echelon of centers that’s playing now and obviously, I’m not at my peak so people would consider me at this playing stage as being upper echelon.
“But I know that there’s at least 15 to 20 teams that I could play for. And I know there’s teams that got great starting centers, but I know I could be a great backup center.”
However, Howard's aim to return to the NBA has taken a massive hit. He was recently sued for sexual assault and battery on another man, who claimed he was forced to join a threesome with Howard and another man dressed as a woman.
Read more here: "This is not his first time being exposed" - Dwight Howard text messages spark wild reactions online amid recent assault allegations