Dwight Howard Sends Clear Message After Replacing Shaquille O’Neal on TNT

Originally posted on Athlon Sports | By Robert Marvi | Last updated May 13, 2025 11:27 PM ET

On Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers secured their second straight Eastern Conference Finals berth, by eliminating the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games in the second round of the playoffs.

They did it thanks to 31 points on 10-of-15 field-goal shooting and eight assists from Tyrese Haliburton.

The Pacers will await the winner of the New York Knicks-Boston Celtics series, currently led by the Knicks three games to one.

On TNT's "Inside the NBA," Dwight Howard sat in for Shaquille O'Neal, and Howard sent a clear message with a post on X.

"Yall gotta have me and my big brother up here next @NBAonTNT," Howard wrote.

Yall gotta have me and my big brother up here next @NBAonTNT
— Dwight Howard (@DwightHoward) May 13, 2025

Howard and O'Neal have had a feud that goes back several years in the middle of Howard's playing career. O'Neal would often criticize Howard because he felt Howard wasn't reaching his potential and should've been a much greater and more prolific player.

In his 18-year career, Howard finished with career averages of 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks a game. During his prime, he was a dominant rebounder and defender, and he led the NBA in rebounding average five times and was named the Defensive Player of the Year three straight times.

He won a championship in 2020 as a reserve with the Los Angeles Lakers after years of bouncing around from team to team amidst accusations of being a self-centered diva.

After his final season in the NBA, Howard spent the 2022-23 season with the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League in Taiwan. He was recently voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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