Dwight Howard recently decided to open up a bit about his private life, most notably about his sexuality as well as a recent lawsuit that was filed against him by Masin Elije, in an interview he gave for FOX Sports.
Howard assured fans that he was not, in fact, gay, and described a lawsuit that he recently had to deal with, filed by a man claiming that Howard had been involved in a romantic relationship with him.
The lawsuit alleged that Howard had harassed the man into signing an NDA (non-disclosure agreement) after their relationship came to an end.
Howard pointed out that he did not even know who the man was, let alone have any past interactions with him.
He then went on to state several more times that he was not gay, and had nothing to hide.
The NBA star stated: “Why would somebody who I never met, never had any contact with, make up a whole story about me? And I saw all the hate, the pure hate, from people I have never met before just pile up. Everywhere I went.”
He added: “The situation made me realize, you’re not like this. Just be you. Be free. I’m not gay. There’s a lot of people who are, and they have to hide. And there’s people who have mental issues, and they have to hide. It’s people who have different problems in life, and they have to hide. They have to put on their mask every day. But it’s like I don’t want to wear no mask. I just want to be.”
"I'm not gay… It hurt at first to go through it. I sat at home and I was like 'I never want to come outside again.'" @DwightHoward spoke on the allegations that he was gay.
(?: @FairGameonFS1 | @KristineLeahy) pic.twitter.com/WcXz2WtOfY
— Complex Sports (@ComplexSports) July 16, 2019
He then talked about other people who are dealing with problems of their own that they usually feel the need to hide.
Howard contrasted these stories to his own, pointing out that his situation was nothing like that, and he did not feel like he had any secrets from the public.
The man, who had filed the lawsuit, responded on social media, doubling down on his statements and claiming that everything he had alleged to was true.
It will likely take some time for this case to unfold properly, but it will be interesting to see the outcome.
It looks like many people observing the developments are somewhat divided on what the possible result is going to be. However, people on social media are not sure that Howard is telling the truth.
"I appreciate you Kobe. Thank you for saying that I was soft. I didn't realize what you meant until now."
Dwight Howard hated when Kobe called him soft, but now he understands the Mamba mentality. pic.twitter.com/j1Q9hjtcRd
— The Shadow League (@ShadowLeague) July 18, 2019
In the lengthy interview, the baller also addressed how painful it was when Los Angeles Lakers great Kobe Bryant called him soft.
He told Kristine Leahy on Fair Game: “He had a comment about me being soft and I think for years I kinda hated him for saying that because I looked at it the wrong way. I think he was talking more so about my mentality, not my physique or how I am on the court. And I didn’t realize that because of the noise surrounding him saying I saw soft. And I hated it. I hated him for that moment.”
On the topic, he concluded with: “I get it now. Everybody reaches different levels of maturity at different times. I think at that time I was ignorant to the level that he was at. But I appreciate you, Kobe. Thank you for saying I was soft. I didn’t realize what you meant ‘til now.”
Howard appears to be trying something new in terms of PR.
