Dwight Howard explains why he left the Lakers

Dwight Howard has been crushed for his last 2 off-seasons, and he is now playing for his third team in three years. Howard has spoken about why he left Los Angeles to the Orlando Sentinel:

"“Everybody’s saying I was a ‘coward’ for leaving [the Lakers], and I knew I was going to get that,” Howard said Tuesday. “But I think with the situation I had to do what was best for Dwight.“I know when I wanted to leave Orlando, and I decided to stay, I wasn’t happy on the inside. I wanted to please everybody else and ended up hurting a lot of people by doing it the way I did. So, this time it’s like I had a second chance.“I said, ‘You know what? People are going to hate me for whatever reason, so I can’t allow that to stop me from making my decision.’ I thought that my decision took a lot of guts because everybody’s saying, ‘How could you leave the Lakers and six billion fans?’ But I don’t care about being an outcast or about being somebody that may look bad. All I’ve got to do is win now, and I’m in the right situation.”"

If he would stop being so indecisive and stop worrying about pleasing everyone, then he wouldn’t have so many issues. It seems as if he is finally doing that, and winning should cure any issues his reputation still has. To pretend like he is some victim is ridiculous though, because he is to blame for the most of his problems.

Let’s be real, if you and I can leave for better opportunities in our lives, then players should have the same right. They don’t owe anything to you, and if they can leave, then get over it. That’s why you can buy tickets and boo all you want, but leaving isn’t against the law. I left ESPN Chattanooga for Fansided, so why is it wrong for a professional athlete to leave? Front offices can trade or cut players, so I don’t hold that against anyone. Dwight Howard should have handled it better, and the victim act has got to stop.