Lakers' Dwight Howard Describes Time With Sixers as 'Vacation'

For the second time in his career, Dwight Howard played for the Los Angeles Lakers during the 2019-2020 season. After struggling to make a significant impact on teams such as the Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, and the Washington Wizards, Howard carved out a different role for himself during his second stint with the Lakers.

Instead of being a full-time starter, Howard came off the bench for all but two games with the Lakers during the 2019-2020 season. Averaging under 20 minutes per game for the first time in his career, Howard embraced the backup role in Los Angeles and enjoyed winning a championship for the first time in his career with the Lakers two seasons ago.

Howard was ready to run it back with the Lakers in 2020-2021. When free agency began in November of 2020, Howard announced he would return to Los Angeles via Twitter. Moments later, though, he deleted his announcement. Not too long after, it was reported that Howard would not be returning to the Lakers. Instead, he was expected to sign with the Sixers.

Howard became Joel Embiid's backup for the 2020-2021 NBA season. He would come off the bench for 63 of 69 matchups. Not only did he have a solid season under Embiid, but Howard enjoyed his lone season in Philly like no other.

For a moment, it seemed Howard was sure to return to the Sixers for next season as he mentioned it would "be a dream come true" to don the 76ers' threads for a second season. However, it became clear as free agency approached that Howard had his sights set on the purple and gold once again.

Plenty of rumors indicated that Howard's return to the Lakers would be inevitable this offseason. Not too long into the opening of free agency this week, Howard inked a one-year deal with the Lakers, marking his time with the Sixers as one and done officially.

Being that Howard originally wanted to return to the Lakers last season and will be back in the purple and gold for the upcoming season, the veteran center referred to his time with the Sixers as a "vacation" on one of his recent Instagram live sessions.

Dwight Howard on coming back to the Lakers via his Instagram Live:

“This is my home, I just went on vacation.”
— Christian Rivas (@RadRivas) August 6, 2021

Howard's description of his time in Philly might come off like he's throwing shade. While it's certainly not great for fans to hear a player refer to his time playing for their team as vacation since it sounds like he took time off to do nothing, the Dwight Howard experience in Philadelphia was a positive one.

Plus, Howard made it clear he enjoyed his time in the City of Brotherly Love. Prior to his questionable comments on Instagram live, Howard sent a heartfelt farewell to Sixers fans just days after re-signing with the Lakers.

While Howard didn't make his dreams of returning to Philly come true, he'll likely stay on Sixers fans' good side for the remainder of his career as he built up a strong connection with the fan base during the 2020-2021 season.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.