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To hear Dwight Howard tell it, the Orlando Magic are set to win a championship with Vince Carter in the fold, and the Toronto Raptors will be a contender in the NBA's Eastern Conference with the addition of ex-teammate Hedo Turkoglu.

Howard, the Magic's franchise player, was in suburban Vancouver yesterday, using his million-dollar smile and giant personality to promote several new products from sports video-game developer Electronic Arts. Matched against tennis star Venus Williams, Boston Bruins winger Milan Lucic, and Major League Soccer's Sacha Kljestan in a four-sport showdown, one of the NBA's giant entertainers stole the show, especially after his goal celebrations in hockey and soccer.

But Howard and his Magic have also been front-and-centre through the first two weeks of NBA free agency, as conference rivals have positioned themselves to compete against the new beasts from the east.

That includes the Raptors, who signed Turkoglu to a five-year, $53-million (all currency U.S.) contract this month, robbing Howard of an important supporting cast member. Orlando responded by trading for Carter, the former Toronto superstar, who will be charged with avenging the team's five-game loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in the NBA final last month.

"I think he's going to do a lot better than he has in the past couple of years," Howard said of Carter, a 32-year-old Florida native whose scoring average has slipped the past two seasons. "He's happy to be home. He's been talking about playing with us for three or four years now, and I'm looking forward to it. I know he's excited, and we have a revitalized, rejuvenated Vince Carter."

Meanwhile, elsewhere in the East, it was a case of the rich getting richer by adding big bodies, players who can defend Howard, the 6-foot-11, 265-pound centre who has emerged as one of the NBA's premier players.

The Cleveland Cavaliers, upset by the Magic in the conference final this past season, traded for Phoenix Suns centre Shaquille O'Neal to team with league most valuable player LeBron James. The Boston Celtics, just one season removed from an NBA title, added free-agent forward Rasheed Wallace, who won a championship with the Detroit Pistons.

"I think the power is shifting to the East," said Howard, who averaged 20 points and 15 rebounds a game in the 2009 playoffs.

But Howard, who was the league's top defensive player last season after winning an Olympic gold medal with the U.S. men's team, also saved praise for the Raptors and Turkoglu. He admitted that losing the 30-year-old Turk would hurt his team, and said the versatile 6-foot-10 forward would help his close friend Chris Bosh, Toronto's franchise player.

"I think they're going to be a contender this year," the 23-year-old said of the Raptors, who missed the playoffs last season. "[Turkoglu] has helped my game in the past couple of years to get where it is today. ... Hedo is a great piece to fit in their team, with his style and his ability to get to the basket and create for others."

MATTHEW SEKERES

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Other teams have improved but the Orlando Magic is a force to reckon with. The Magic have addressed their needs and I've heard that their not done yet. The Magic are still looking for a back up pg, a wing and possible another back-up center. I've been hearing Matt Barnes' name being thrown around. I hope the Magic would be able to get him.

On my first day as a reporting intern for the Orlando Sentinel, I found myself sitting on the bleachers at the Magic practice facility, watching the Oklahoma City Thunder play the Boston Celtics. I tried to fight my nerves as I watched the clock wind down. Soon, I was going to conduct my first interview. Little did I realize I would be the one getting interviewed.

It was then that Magic All-Star center Dwight Howard sat down next to me.

I moved over, grabbing my papers, trying to give him room. That's when he picked up my tape recorder.

I figured he was going to hand it to me, and I thought to myself, 'I can tell my friends Dwight Howard sat down next to me and handed me my tape recorder!'

But instead, he turned to me, pushed record and asked, "Why do you guys always ask us the same questions every time you interview us?"

Surprised, I answered, "I guess because we don't want to make you uncomfortable with different questions that you might not want to answer."

"So the plan is to ask us the same questions every time?" he demanded. "The fans want to know about our lives, personal questions."

"Do you like sharing personal questions?" I asked.

"Yeah, you don't want to get too deep, but you want to let them know how you feel."

I asked Howard what questions are not too personal and he responded by asking me, "What was your biggest influence growing up?"

"My parents," I replied.

During our interview, I felt excited and oddly calm. I never imagined my first interview would be with Dwight Howard.

It was strange to hear him ask why reporters don't ask more personal questions. You would think most athletes would want to avoid personal questions in an attempt to keep some part of their very public lives private.

He then shared some of the same boring questions that he hears all too often: "Who do we like playing with, who is our favorite player, why do we play basketball, how does it feel to play with a certain player and how do you feel about winning a game?"

Periodically, Howard would pause and watch the Celtics and the Thunder, focusing on a player's technique. At one point, he said, "Come on, shoot it!"

It was easy to see how passionate Howard is about his career and basketball. After all, he came to the summer league games to watch the new crop of players, and meet up with friends and some fans.

Even with a game in progress, many eyes were on Howard. Media, fans and other basketball players watched him as he chatted with his friends and watched the game from the bleacher seats.

Players on the court, during timeouts, took turns glancing over at him, maybe looking for a hint of approval.
To signal our interview was at its end, Howard returned my tape recorder and said, "OK, that's enough for today."

After about 20 minutes, it was time for Howard to go. My eyes followed him as he walked away, and I knew one thing: I will never get tired of telling this story.

By Lauren Cepero

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There's really something special about Dwight. He's not as arrogant as other athletes. I really appreciate his intention to be more open to his fans. This article kind of creates a warm feeling to the heart.