Seven-foot Dwight Howard was a huge surprise (literally) on ‘Dancing with the Stars’ – he’s a major contender to win

NBA star Dwight Howard is one of the tallest celebrities ever to compete on “Dancing with the Stars.” At 6’11” he towers over his 5’3″ professional dance partner Daniella Karagach, posing a huge challenge (literally) for her when trying to choreograph routines. How do you coordinate movements when you’re practically a whole human being smaller than your celeb? Well, luckily for Howard, he’s paired with the one pro who might be able to handle it. Watch their season premiere salsa above.

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Not too long ago, in season 30, Karagach made history with Iman Shumpert, guiding him to become the very first basketball player to win the Mirror Ball Trophy. Before him, b-ballers tended to struggle on “DWTS” because their height usually made for physically awkward partnerships. But Karagach made it work, and after a breakthrough “Us”-themed freestyle they broke away from the pack and won the whole competition. Though when it comes to Howard, who’s half a foot taller than Shumpert was, the choreography might prove even more challenging.

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The celeb and pro lucked out by getting a salsa as their first dance. It gave the judges and the audience a chance to see what he’s capable of in a routine that welcomed lifts and acrobatic tricks and wasn’t as dependent on being in hold. The resulting scores were an eight from Carrie Ann Inaba and sevens from Bruno Tonioli and Derek Hough, giving him 22 out of 30, placing him second for the night behind Chandler Kinney and ahead of season 33 front-runner Stephen Nedoroscik. It took less than two minutes on the dance floor to put him right into the conversation for this year’s Mirror Ball Trophy. And if Karagach does it again with another basketball star, she’d have to be considered one of the best, most creative pros the show has ever seen.

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