Dwight Howard completed his rocky season with the Lakers in dramatic fashion. The center was ejected during Game 4 of Los Angeles' opening playoff series with the San Antonio Spurs after receiving his second technical foul for arguing with officials. While some speculate that it was Howard's final game in a Lakers' uniform, others are calling out the center for the way he handled himself in the game. Magic Johnson took Twitter to express his unhappiness with Howard, saying his teammates and fans were counting on him.
Johnson stressed that he was happy the Lakers season was over, believing it will go down as one of the worst in the history of the franchise. Johnson tweeted that he had been swept before during his playing days, but never let his team down by getting kicked out of a game like Howard did. The Lakers were already trailing the Spurs 55-34 at the time of Howard's third quarter ejection, so it was just adding insult to injury. After the game, Howard said he needs to do a better job of controlling his emotions during the game.
"It's over with now. I just got to do a better job of trying to keep my cool. It's very tough to be out there playing. It's an emotional game, you don't want to lose and sometimes when things don't go your way, sometimes you react the wrong way. I just got to keep my cool," Howard said.
The ejection only adds to speculation that Howard will not be returning to Los Angeles next season. He is set to become a free agent on July 1 and after a rocky season, he intends on testing the market. Howard will have the option of signing a five-year. $118 million deal with the Lakers or a four-year. $87.6 million deal somewhere else. The Lakers already have a diminishing roster. Kobe Bryant is rehabbing an injury. Steve Nash and Metta World Peace are also recovering from injuries. It leaves little incentive for Howard to return.
"I'm going to step away from everything for a couple weeks and clear my head before I do or talk about anything as far as next season. I think I deserve that, and that's what I'm going to do," Howard said.