Dwight Howard may have a career in WWE once his NBA playing days come to an end. TMZ Sports obtained a video of the 36-year-old NBA star crashing WWE tryouts in Nashville and cutting a promo on Thursday. In the video, Howard channeled Sho’nuff, who is the villain from the 1985 movie The Last Dragon.
According to TMZ Sports, Howard was at the tryout for fun. The tryout featured a bunch of college athletes including Troy Polamalu’s nephew, and the athletes were showing off their skills in front of WWE executives, including Triple H. Howard may not be ready to retire from the NBA, but that doesn’t mean he won’t join WWE down the road.
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“I think it is something that’s in my future. I love the WWE. I love wrestling,” Howard told Arash Markazi. “Hopefully one day in the future, I’ll actually be in the ring. … I’ve been watching this my whole life and I was like, ‘Man, if I had an opportunity to do this, I was going to do it with my whole heart to the best that I can.’”
According to Figthful Select, Howard was still at tryouts on Friday, and WWE cameras were following him. WWE Superstar Big E, Bianca Belair and Seth Rollins were at tryouts along with WWE co-CEOs Stephanie McMahon and Nick Khan. This is taking place shortly before SummerSlam which will be held at Nissan Stadium in Nashville on Saturday.
Howard is currently looking for an NBA team after spending the 2021-22 season with the Los Angeles Lakers. In 60 games with 27 starts last year, Howard averaged 6.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per game. It was his third stint with the Lakers as he was with the team during the 2012-13 season and the 2019-20 season, which is the year the Lakers won the NBA Championship. Howard began his NBA career in 2004 as he was selected No. 1 overall by the Orlando Magic in the 2004 NBA Draft. He was with the Magic for eight seasons before spending time with the Lakers, Houston Rockets, Atlanta Hawks, Charlotte Hornets, Washington Wizards and Philadelphia 76ers. In his career, Howard is an eight-time All-Star, an eight-time All-NBA selection and a three-time NBA Defensive Player of the Year winner.
