Dwight Howard: Is Having Fun Most Important Thing? Boston Celtics Say No!

Since we were kids, we were always told while playing sports that the most important thing is to have fun.

Someone should have told Dwight Howard that there are a couple of things that go along with that—like intensity and focus. Howard loves to have fun and yuck it up on and off  the court. That childlike demeanor is fun for a fan to watch, and it makes Howard a likable star.

But all that fun could just be the difference between being a contender and being a champion. Yes, the Magic did beat the Celtics two years ago in the Eastern Conference Semifinals, but the Celtics were without Kevin Garnett.

The following year was a different story as the Celtics beat the Magic 3-2 in the semifinals. Garnett was healthy and played every game in that series. Garnett seems to be an exact opposite of the fun-loving Howard

For example, in an Eastern Conference matchup in January between the Boston Celtics and the Orlando Magic at the TD Garden, with less than two minutes to go in a one-point game, Howard was matched up with Kevin Garnett.

Waiting for an inbound pass, Howard was laughing, joking and looking loose—possibly trying to get into Garnett's head. Garnett didn't blink, he just scowled that "KG" scowl and went about his business (which turned out to be drawing a foul and knocking down two crucial free throws).

That put the Celtics up by two with 1:05 remaining in the game. Then with 15 seconds left and Boston up 107-104 Garnett picked off a pass from Jameer Nelson which sealed the win for the Celtics.

Howard did drop in 33 points and added 13 rebounds as opposed to Garnett's 19 points and eight rebounds, but it was having focus and intensity down the stretch that seemed to give the Celtics their 31st win of the season.