Dwight Howard and partner Daniella Karagach chat with THR at the 'Dancing With the Stars' premiere and dish on how they are handling the height difference when rehearsing their performances. Plus, Dwight compares the first dance of the season to the first game of an NBA season.
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00:00We were so happy to see you guys out there.
00:02It looked like you were having so much fun.
00:04How are you feeling?
00:04Just immediate reaction.
00:06I feel amazing.
00:07We had so much fun out there.
00:09Every second on the dance floor was just like all the hard work
00:13we put in all week.
00:15We finished short.
00:17And we tried to give the best show possible.
00:20And you did amazing.
00:21OK, so how does the first dance of the season
00:25compare to game one of an NBA season?
00:28It's about the same.
00:28It's so crazy.
00:30I was sweating bullets for the last hour and a half,
00:34just like I would before a game.
00:36And she's over there like, calm down.
00:37Get out of your head.
00:38Ah.
00:42Just like that.
00:43That's exactly what I looked like.
00:44She was.
00:47And I was like, OK.
00:49Then we got together.
00:51We meditated.
00:53And then we crushed it.
00:56I mean, you absolutely crushed it.
00:58Do you have any teammates or any fellow athletes
01:01that texted you tonight, offered you words of support?
01:04Well, see, I try to do what I do before games.
01:06I put my phone down.
01:08And I have probably a lot of messages
01:10when I get back to the room.
01:11But I just put my phone away so I
01:13can lock in on me and my partner, our dance routine.
01:21And yeah, that's what I did.
01:22I kind of put my phones down, yeah.
01:25All right, so you're a champion.
01:26You've won a title.
01:27You know what that is like.
01:28How are you channeling that energy into this season?
01:31Hard work, intensity, but also fun.
01:34But enjoying this whole journey.
01:37This is a journey, you know, from the first day
01:40to hopefully when we finish with the mirror ball.
01:43But every step of the way is important.
01:45We don't want to miss any steps.
01:47We want to enjoy all the steps.
01:49And at the end, whatever happens is going to happen.
01:53How have you guys in rehearsals figured out
01:55the height difference?
01:56When you're choreographing, figuring out moves?
01:59We just go with the flow.
02:01It either works or it doesn't work.
02:02And if it doesn't work, we change it.
02:05That's all you can do.
02:06And then also would love to say, you
02:08told THR that your dance skills were at an eight
02:10at the start of the season.
02:12And you wanted to move towards a 10.
02:13How are you moving towards that goal?
02:15Practicing every day.
02:16She gives me homework.
02:18I do my homework.
02:20And I'm like, I have dance fever.
02:22Like, every time I hear music, I just,
02:25I'm working on my movements and stuff like that.
02:27Because, you know, she just inspired me.
02:29She's been dancing her whole life.
02:31And so it just inspired me, yeah.
02:34Are you seeing that move improvement?
02:36Yeah, absolutely.
02:37Every day.
02:39All right, so any words that you want
02:41to share going into next season?
02:43How do you, how are you motivating yourself?
02:46Hey, fans, vote for us.
02:48That's how I'm motivated.
02:50We need your votes.
02:51We need your love.
02:54We need you.