The family of Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard suffered a deeply unfortunate tragedy during the hiatus when the mother of Howard's 6-year-old son unexpectedly passed away. According to Howard, her death was related to complications from epilepsy.

After the Lakers defeated the Denver Nuggets in Game 5 of the Western Conference Finals, Howard spoke about the importance of having his son with him in the bubble as L.A. vies for a championship:

“I think it'll mean the world to him,” the Lakers center told reporters postgame on Saturday. “He'll never forget this moment and neither will I.

“I know earlier when we first got to the bubble, me and him sat down and he said, ‘This is the worst year of his life. Why is life so hard?' I didn't really know how to answer to him,” the Lakers veteran continued. “But I just try to be the right example for him every single day. On the court, off the court. He pushes me to be the best I can be so it's an opportunity to be together despite everything that's happened in his young life. Just to make this moment very special.”

Howard has generally played well during the 2019-20 season and in the bubble playoffs. The Lakers veteran averaged 14.3 points and 14.0 rebounds per 36 minutes during the regular season, and he's at 14.8 points and 11.2 rebounds on a per-36 basis in the postseason.

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In the final two games of the conference finals, Howard played a key role in slowing down Nikola Jokic. The Nuggets star found himself in foul trouble in both games, and he tallied just 36 points, 14 rebounds, and nine assists in 66 minutes in Games 4 and 5 combined, which were both Lakers victories.

Howard moved into the Lakers' starting lineup for those games, and now he's back in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2009.