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HOUSTON – Dwight Howard watched how the derision dissipated for LeBron James, how the mocking turned back into marvel. The path to a superstar's public cleansing for past immaturities and missteps on free agency's jagged journey doesn't rise out of clever commercials and endless explanations.

Championships changed the framing of LeBron James, and an NBA title promises to be the sole basketball salvation for the league's best center.

"Last year, I felt like I was the villain," Howard told Yahoo Sports. "Now, I feel like I'm an even bigger villain."

Most of all, victory validates the villain. It promises to free Howard. That's the burden of this NBA now. Born of a belief these players and coaches and management offer him the best chance at a championship, Howard has come to the Houston Rockets with an eye eastward.

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Howard wants to take James' and the Miami Heat's title, but confesses to finding comfort in the redemption of the best player on the planet. For Howard, another scorned star, James' redemption represents the light in the distance.

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"He got hated for a lot of reasons," Howard told Yahoo. "I was really, really happy when LeBron finally won. I was unhappy that it wasn't me up there, but I was glad to see him get through that whole thing.

"I knew exactly how he felt. People putting you down, saying bad things about your character, who you are as a person. It doesn't sit well with you. When you go out on the court, you want to show them, 'Hey, this isn't who I am.'

"Here's a guy who's a great basketball player. He did something that was for him, and he did it in front of the whole world. I realized then that our issues, our problems, our flaws are out there for the world to see. You can't run from it. We have to learn from our mistakes and move forward."

Howard is relieved to be out of Los Angeles, out of the free-agency grinder, but he's still raw. James had a hard two years post-Cleveland until he won a title, but Howard's free-agency folly extended two-plus years before he could even thrust himself into contention.

"I'm happy all that is over with," Howard said, "and I'm in a better place physically and emotionally."

NBA free agency doesn't lend itself to the elevation in popularity of the league's star players. Former Players Association executive director Billy Hunter gave up so much in collective bargaining over the years, including U.S. professional sports' only cap on an individual player's salary. The maximum contract left the superstar underpaid for the impact they deliver on TV ratings, ticket sales and winning.

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