Dwight Howard has been dealing with an injured shoulder for the majority of the season, and has missed several games due to the injury. After previous reports where Howard claimed the labrum wasn’t torn but just strained, he admitted on Friday in Houston that his shoulder is indeed torn.
“The shoulder’s not going to change. It’s torn. It’s not going to change. It’s not going away.”
Howard went on to talk about his injured back, which required surgery last off-season and forced him to miss his final postseason as a member of the Orlando Magic.
“Whoever has had back surgery knows, it takes awhile, it takes a full year to recover from back surgery. People don’t understand, me coming back early and playing was a blessing in itself. For me to be doing what I’m doing coming off surgery is big. I just feel to be doing what I’m doing now, there’s not a lot of people that can be doing that.”
This is the kind of attitude that has rubbed many fans in Los Angeles the wrong way. Howard has earned a reputation as an individual that is more concerned with himself than the success of the team. While I do feel those comments are unfair, these aren’t the comments the fans want from Howard.
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Regardless, Laker fans are hoping Howard is able to play through the pain and get back to playing at the level they expected him to be at when they traded for him last summer.