Long-beleaguered NBA star Dwight Howard has finally found an oasis after wandering in his own personal desert for the past decade.
Howard, the 34-year-old Los Angeles Lakers center, celebrated two major milestones in the fall of 2020: his Lakers took home the 2020 NBA championship, and he secretly tied the knot with his fiancée Te’a Cooper, a rookie with the WNBA’s Los Angeles Sparks.
The towering Atlanta native dropped the surprising bomb on the podcast “The Rematch” when he referred to Cooper as “his wife” for the first time.
“I would definitely love to come back and play for the Lakers,” Howard said in the interview. “My wife plays for the Sparks, so it would be great for both of us to still be in the same city and play.”
Howard also spoke about how Cooper helped to elevate him as a man and human being.
“You know what? I love it. I absolutely love it. It’s new for me. I never had a situation like that but I’m very happy,” he said. “It’s really just brought more peace, more happiness. Also, it just changed my life. When you have a really great woman behind you, on your side, it just seems to make everything better. So I’m very grateful for her and how she’s just been like my rock and my foundation.”
The three-time Defensive Player of the Year and five-time All-NBA star loves how Cooper pushes him to climb to greater plateaus in life and in his sport.
“We’re like twins. It’s just crazy. We definitely enjoy each other’s company,” he said. “She pushes me to be a greater person. I just push her to reach new heights. She’s doing such an amazing job. Just trying to be there for her in every way that I can.”
Flip the page to watch the full interview, including Howard discussing what he loves about his new bride around the 37:20 mark.
