For every NBA player, getting into the Hall of Fame isn’t just an award—it’s the dream. It’s the finish line and the crown. Paul Pierce once said, “To be inducted, that’s something that’s forever. When I’m long gone, my kids’ children will see that and it’s a place for me in basketball lore forever”. It’s monumental, and its ripples not only affect the inductee. A $416 billion titan of streaming froze its cameras. Why? Because on set, Dwight Howard, once doubted, now a first‑ballot Hall‑of‑Famer, answered the call that stopped the world. In that suspended second, corporate giants bowed to basketball greatness.
Not long after, it was confirmed—Dwight Howard is going into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame. The same Dwight once doubted by critics, now forever in basketball history. Alongside him, legends like Vince Carter and Chauncey Billups also made the list. Each name carries its own weight, but for Howard, this was deeply personal. What was going through his mind as he heard the news? Turns out, everything. And the moment was far more emotional than fans expected.
During a podcast episode, Howard opened up about the life-changing call. “Man, it was just so unreal,” he began. He explained how he was in London, filming a show, for the roughly $ 400 billion-worth company Netflix, just waiting for the call that was scheduled for Monday. “I get the call,” he said, “and as I’m walking away, just listening to him talk to me… everything he said—it was just like, man, he’s about to say it.” When the words finally came, he couldn’t hold back. Years of memories, dreams, and sacrifices came rushing in at once. “I just start crying like never before,” he added. To which his co-host, Mu Real, revealed, “Like, he had the whole Netflix cast crying.” The entire room felt the weight of his journey, and Netflix came to a standstill.
Apr 10, 2022; Denver, Colorado, USA; Los Angeles Lakers center Dwight Howard (39) during the second half against the Denver Nuggets at Ball Arena.
Then, Howard reflected on what it really meant. “Over seven billion people,” he said. “To say that my name is inked in that basketball forever,” he added. According to Howard, out of over seven billion people, maybe a billion had touched a basketball. Yet only a few hundred have ever made it into the Hall. “That’s like a goal for a fighter, for a superhero.” To him, being remembered was never about stats: it was about legacy.
So what was Dwight Howard filming during his Hall of Fame call?
Which Netflix show was Dwight Howard filming when he received the life-changing call about his Hall of Fame induction? Well, for now, it is not clear, but we do know how he revealed the information to his close ones. Mu Real gave us a glimpse behind the scenes. He shared how Dwyane Wade suddenly told him, “Yo, we gotta go to the Final Four.” That surprise turned into a trip to San Antonio, where Wade told everyone, “Yo, I made it to the Hall of Fame.”
What made it more surreal was that nobody outside knew the official Hall of Fame results yet. NBA reporters kept reaching out, but Mu Real said he was just trying to enjoy the Final Four. “I’m at the Final Four, like chill out,” he joked. It seems like Howard’s emotional moment was caught right in the middle of filming something special. The timing matches the release and production window of Starting 5—a show that already features LeBron James, Jimmy Butler, and other NBA stars.
Howard’s response was full of pride and reflection. He spoke about the doubters, the criticism, and how none of it erased what he’d done on the court. He recalled, “Just being able to say it now, like when there were so many doubters, so many people who were like, ‘Nah, he ain’t no Hall of Famer.’” He asked a simple but powerful question: “What about all the basketball?” That emotion and defiance say a lot about what the moment meant to him. And there might be someone special inducting him in!
Produced by LeBron’s Uninterrupted (Omaha Productions), Michelle and Barack Obama’s Higher Ground, and Peyton Manning’s Omaha Productions, the series was filmed in arenas, practice courts, and for certain segments, on location in London. Exactly where Howard was! Insiders hint that Howard makes a surprise cameo in an upcoming episode—likely a “Hall of Fame special”—despite not being one of the five primary subjects. In a recent Sports Business Journal feature, showrunner Amin Touri confirmed that the crew sought “unfiltered reactions” from NBA legends when news broke, and London shoots were arranged to capture live emotion.
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