Howard: 'We can't quit on each other' By Jenny Dial Creech Houston Chronicle
Rockets need to keep fighting despite being in a 3-0 hole against Golden State, he says.
Dwight Howard isn’t hearing any of the negativity.
“I’m keeping my headphones on,” the Rockets center said.
As Howard and the Rockets head into Game 4 of the Western Conference finals down 3-0 to the Warriors after a crushing loss in Game 3, things are looking grim. No team has ever come back from that deficit in the NBA playoffs.
In Saturday’s 115-80 loss in Game 3, the Rockets were outscored, outrebounded, out played and outworked. There was nothing positive for the team to take away.
But Howard is refusing to let any of that in the Rockets’ locker room.
“We’ve come too far, we’ve had too many battles,” he said. “We can’t quit on each other now.”
While the Rockets were down on Saturday night, Howard didn’t let them stay there for long. While Howard is often criticized for his light, upbeat demeanor, the uplifting attitude has been refreshing to his teammates.
“We’ve got to move forward,” Howard said. “I mean, that’s the only way I know is to move forward. We all go through different trials and tribulations, and for us to try to get over whatever we’re trying to get over, we’ve got to fight through.”
Howard is a clear leader for the team. He was their biggest cheerleader when he was out for two months with a knee injury. He has been a consistently dominant force for them on the court throughout the postseason. When he sprained his knee in Game 1 of this series, he battled through it to be there for his teammates.
“He’s tough and he works hard,” forward Terrence Jones said.
So when Howard talked to the team after Game 3, the words held a lot of meaning.
“He told us to keep fighting,” Jones said. “I really appreciate the big fella expressing himself and letting us all know how much he wants to win and hopefully we can all go out there and give that kind of effort.”
That’s all Howard is asking for. With effort and energy, the Rockets will be a much better team, he said. It ’s that simple. He hasn’t spent any time trying to figure out what all went wrong on Saturday night.
“I can’t explain it,” he said. “It’s over. It happened. The sun came up agai n today, so we’ve got to move forward. Last ni ght was ugly, the ser ies has been ugly, but you know, instead of sulking in negativity and allowing the negative energy to pull us down, we’ve got to find a way to stay positive.”
So when the team met for practice on Sunday, Howard smiled. He tried to make it fun. He had words of encouragement.
He tried to spread his message of positivity throughout the ranks.
“I think everyone who walked through here was positive,” guard Jason Terry sai d. “That’s what we are going to need moving forward.”
The Rockets have a chance to extend the series on Monday when they host the Warriors in Game 4, but the numbers aren’t in thei r favor. Of the 116 previous teams to get an 0-3 hole in the pl ayoffs, 69 have been swept.
Howard will be ready. He will be sure his teammates are, too.
“We just got to go out there and sell out to each ot her,” Howard said. “Trust each other and don’t quit on each other. We’ve got to bel ieve. If there’s any doubt or any disbelief in your spirit, then you might as well say we’re finished.
“I want to continue to believe. It’s the first team to four wins, and we’ve got to stay positive, and no matter what goes on, no matter what your friends or family or whatever are saying, we’ve got to say positive because we’re the ones that’s actually in the battle.”
‘Last night was ugly, the series has been ugly, but you know, instead of sulking in negativity ... we’ve got to find a way to stay positive.’
Dwight Howard