"We were the best team": Dwight Howard, ex-Lakers Quinn Cook, and DeMarcus Cousins reminisce 2020 Lakers
Dwight Howard won his only NBA championship in 2020 with the LA Lakers. No longer the franchise cornerstone he once was, the former Orlando Magic superstar became an integral part of the bench. Howard backed up Anthony Davis on most nights and anchored the defense when he was on the floor.
The Lakers’ championship continues to be discussed four years later. Some don’t want to recognize it as it happened during the COVID-19 pandemic. Many still believe that had the league not played inside "The Bubble," the outcome would have been different.
Dwight Howard had to say about the Lakers’ championship run in a podcast:
“We were the best team. The only thing I’m mad about is they didn’t keep all of us together.”
DeMarcus Cousins, who couldn’t play a game during the 2019-20 season due to a torn ACL, added:
“Our team chemistry was through the roof. We had so much fun together.”
Quinn Cook, who was part of the bench unit as well, pointed out something that had been overlooked:
“Go look at us before the bubble.”
The Lakers had a 49-14 record, the best in the Western Conference, before “The Bubble” in Florida started. From February 2020 until play was stopped in mid-March, they had a 13-4 record, the best in the NBA during that span. They were peaking at the right time when play had to be stopped before the league reconvened roughly four months later.
Dwight Howard and Co. struggled to finish the regular season strongly at the World Disney World Resort. They started with a 103-101 win against the LA Clippers but ended up with a 3-5 record before the playoffs began.
Dwight Howard played a key role in the Lakers’ 2020 championship
Dwight Howard helped the LA Lakers to a 12-3 record in the first three rounds of the 2020 NBA Playoffs. Their struggles in the regular season carried over to the first round against the Portland Trail Blazers. After losing Game 1 100-93, the LeBron James-led squad turned themselves around to win the next four games.
The superb showing against Portland gave the Lakers the momentum and rhythm they once had before “The Bubble” started. They also lost in the opening game versus the Houston Rockets 112-97 before running away in the next four games.
Dwight Howard became even more essential in the Western Conference Finals against the Denver Nuggets. The Lakers won the first two games and ended the Nuggets’ chance of a championship with a 4-1 WCF victory. Howard had an instrumental role in containing Nikola Jokic.
The Lakers, however, retooled the supporting cast the following season. Howard took his talents to Philadelphia while DeMarcus Cousins went to Houston. Quinn Cook stayed but was sent to Cleveland at the trade deadline. “Superman,” is still miffed the Lakers broke up that team to this day.