After the Phoenix Suns were eliminated by the Denver Nuggets in a blowout Game 6 loss in the Western Conference semifinals, Dwight Howard was quick to tease point guard Chris Paul to come join him in Taiwan.
"Aye @cp3 what we doing," Howard, currently a player for the Taoyuan Leopards of the T1 League, wrote on Instagram.
Underneath, he wrote a caption in Chinese that read: "Please tag @cp3 if you want him to come to Taiwan with me too."
In that post, Howard used the picture of a fake quote by his former Team USA Olympic teammate in which Paul had allegedly said that if he didn't win a championship ring now that Kevin Durant is with the Suns, then he would join Howard overseas.
"Bro, I would do it! I don't know why he over here getting nervous!" said the voice over Howard used for his joke.
However, he later admitted the post was just a joke... sort of.
"Just joking /recruiting" Howard later commented on his own post.
The 37-year-old Howard headed to Taiwan when he left the Lakers in 2022 after his third stint in Los Angeles. During his most recent season playing in the NBA, Howard averaged 6.2 points and 5.9 rebounds per contest while appearing in 60 games -- 27 those as a starter when Anthony Davis was injured.
Through his time in the league, Howard was an eight-time NBA All-Star and three-time Defensive Player of the Year. He also earned a championship ring in 2020, something Paul is still chasing. Paul, a 12-time NBA All-Star, did not play in the last four games of the conference semifinals series against the Nuggets due to a groin injury he suffered in Game 2. Paul and Howard were part of the 2008 "Redeem Team" that won a gold medal at the Summer Olympics in Beijing.
