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<\/p>\nOn Tuesday, the Indiana Pacers secured their second straight Eastern Conference Finals berth, by eliminating the Cleveland Cavaliers in five games in the second round of the playoffs.<\/p>\n
They did it thanks to 31 points on 10-of-15 field-goal shooting and eight assists from Tyrese Haliburton.<\/p>\n
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The Pacers will await the winner of the New York Knicks-Boston Celtics series, currently led by the Knicks three games to one.<\/p>\n
On TNT’s “Inside the NBA,” Dwight Howard sat in for Shaquille O’Neal, and Howard sent a clear message with a post on X.<\/p>\n
“Yall gotta have me and my big brother up here next \ud83d\ude02 @NBAonTNT,” Howard wrote.<\/p>\n
Howard and O’Neal have had a feud that goes back several years in the middle of Howard’s playing career. O’Neal would often criticize Howard because he felt Howard wasn’t reaching his potential and should’ve been a much greater and more prolific player.<\/p>\n
In his 18-year career, Howard finished with career averages of 15.7 points, 11.8 rebounds and 1.8 blocks a game. During his prime, he was a dominant rebounder and defender, and he led the NBA in rebounding average five times and was named the Defensive Player of the Year three straight times.<\/p>\n
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Former Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard (12)Howard Smith-Imagn Images<\/p>\n
He won a championship in 2020 as a reserve with the Los Angeles Lakers after years of bouncing around from team to team amidst accusations of being a self-centered diva.<\/p>\n
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After his final season in the NBA, Howard spent the 2022-23 season with the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League in Taiwan. He was recently voted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.<\/p>\n