One of the more infamous stories in NBA lore revolves around Los Angeles Lakers legend Kobe Bryant and three-time Defensive Player of the Year Dwight Howard.

The latter had recently joined the Lakers as part of a four-team trade that involved a series of notable moves, such as the once beloved Andrew Bynum being sent from L.A. to a team that he would never suit of for in the Philadelphia 76ers. After making his claim to fame with the Orlando Magic, Howard came to the Lakers with high expectations, especially with Bryant then in the twilight of his career.

However, Dwight and Kobe would never mesh — to say the least of it — and Howard left L.A. as a free agent after the Lakers were swept by the San Antonio Spurs in the first round of the 2013 NBA Playoffs.

Speaking about the move from L.A. to Houston on Matt Hoffa's Expert Opinion, Howard would reveal that he chose to join the Houston Rockets because he believed James Harden to be a younger version of Kobe.

“I felt the best the time was — obviously, I wanted to go to [the Brooklyn Nets] that didn't happen — I went to the Lakers. And when I saw James Harden, I looked at him as a younger version of Kobe [Bryant]. I don't know why I was thinking that…”

“… The furthest we got was the Western Conference Finals…”

Clearly showing regret over how his time in both Houston and L.A. ended, Howard was faced with the following question:

What would he change if he could do it all again?

“Looking back on it, if I would've sat down and really thought about my decisions without being in my emotions, I probably would've stayed in probably in L.A. at that time.”