ESPN’s Skip Bayless doesn’t bite his tongue very often, usually leading to him saying things that piss somebody off. That’s why he’s on First Take, because love him or hate him he gets people talking. His latest verbal ammo was aimed at Orlando Magic center Dwight Howard, who was a guest (via satellite) on the show earlier today.

Host Dana Jacobson asked Dwight about a poll they were running about who is a more “in-shape Superman” between himself, Jack LaLanne and Bayless. Maybe all the criticism Bayless dropped on Howard before got under his skin, because he pounced on the opportunity to question Skip’s athletic abilities by asking if he ever eveb played any sports, which prompted Bayless to unleash some venomous ether at the 3:30 mark.

Unfortunately ESPN disabled their embedding, so you can see the exchange in a lower quality below or just click the bolded link above.

Dwight: “Has Skip Bayless ever did any sports?”
Skip: “Well at least I don’t look like Tarzan and sometimes play like Jane.”

Ouch. That had to sting Dwight, who later took the trash talking to Twitter, via his @DwightHoward page and @RealSkipBayless. Check some of the back and forth below.

There’s no telling if the two will ever sit down together, but Skip is crazy if he thinks he’s in better shape than Dwight and we all know he would never want to test his manhood in person.

-Will.

Will R. is a journalist/writer who covers sports, news and music for several websites. His music work can be found on www.WestCoastRydaz.com

The Boston Celtics lead the Orlando Magic and Eastern Conference Finals 2-0 after smothering the defending Conference champions twice on their home floor. I’m not saying the series is over but Orlando should start dusting off their fishing gear.

One person willing to say the series is over is whoever hacked Paul Pierce’s Twitter account. The friend hacker posted “Anybody got a BROOM?” on Pierce’s verified page, leading to Dwight Howard responding to the fake tweet.

Paul Pierce sent this real tweet acknowledging that the series is only halfway done:

Reporters at Dwight Howard’s postgame press conference asked him about Pierce’s comments without knowing that Paul’s Twitter account had been hacked. Howard sounded depressed but tried to keep a positive tone.

Dwight Howard Responds to Paul Pierce “Broom” Tweet:

Some biblical detective work by Matt Humphrey at the Orlando Sentinel shows Howard was loosely quoting Proverbs 16:17-18:

Proverbs 16:17-18 (New International Version)

17 The highway of the upright avoids evil;
he who guards his way guards his life.

18 Pride goes before destruction,
a haughty spirit before a fall.

I think the old saying “There’s always next year” is the most applicable.

Dwight Howard spent most of the 2010 NBA All-Star Weekend answering questions about whether he or Shaquille O’Neal should don the Superman title. Howard hasn’t come out and said he’s stepping away from the Man of Steel theme but he did joke that he’s Batman now. Stay tuned.

On the court Batman/Superman Howard showed new abilities when he hit a three-pointer in the first quarter of the All-Star game. If he could hit 3s on a regular basis and develop a better post game he could start making his case for Superman.

You can see Dwight asking coach Stan Van Gundy for one more three-point attempt. He got it and bricked. He’ll have to settle for 50 percent.

Earlier today Sports by Brooks brought us the news of Dwight Howard‘s baby mama Royce Reed partying it up in Miami for the Super Bowl. He has pictures and a Twitter confirmation. The party was thrown at Fontainebleau and hosted by Ludacris and Terrell Owens. From the looks of this video is was a great time for all.

Royce Reed is the woman in the black outfit:

They were dacning for tickets? Seems like Royce could get them a lot easier if she wasn’t involved in lawsuits with Superman 2.0.

UPDATE: If you have any doubt that the woman in the video is Dwight Howard’s BM Royce Reed this tweet from her will remove it for you:

Dwight Howard has a two-year-old son with Royce Lyndsay Reed but the two are far from a happy couple. Howard and Reed were in court in October because Reed called Superman a deadbeat dad on ESPN, Twitter, and her blog. The court sided with Howard and slapped a muzzle on Reed.

From TMZ:

Dwight ended up winning a permanent injunction against Royce — and according to the documents, she’s banned from “using or publishing (orally, in writing, or otherwise), directly, indirectly or by innuendo, [Dwight's] name, nicknames, image, brand photographs, and/or likeness.”

If the above ban applies to general conversation it’s impossible for Reed to talk to her son about his father. The order reduces her to using that guy or sperm donor.

Dwight Howard Blocks Out His Baby Mama [TMZ]

Dwight Howard knocked down the shot clock atop of the Orlando Magic basket with a monster dunk in the first quarter against the Cleveland Cavaliers. The jam doesn’t reach the level of Darryl Dawkins or Shaquille O’Neal tearing down a basket, but it’s still impressive.

Dwight’s dunk caused an eight minute delay in the game. Like I said, it was impressive but it wasn’t even the best video of Dwight Howard today.

Props to Ball Don’t Lie for this video of Dwight Howard meeting former Olympian Dominique Dawes. Something tells me Dwight Howard is a fan of hers.

The rest of the world now knows how to stop Dwight Howard on the basketball court. Break out the old school gymnast. Dominique Dawes was a member of three Olympic teams (’92, ’96, and ’00), and she dominated my fantasies in the summer of 1992. I would’ve been just as excited as Dwight Howard if I met Dominique, but I wouldn’t have been rolling around on the ground.. Unless she asked me too.

Dwight Howard, Dominique Dawes, Team USA, video, youtube

Team USA basketball began their quest for the gold with a 120-65 blowout of Canada in an exhibition game in Las Vegas. Dwyane Wade looks to be recovered from his injuries, and Carmelo Anthony continues to play well under international rules, but there’s not a lot to be learned from this game. Canada sucks. Chris Sheridan of ESPN broke down Team USA’s defensive performance, and early on it looks like giving up uncontested shots and lack of size are the team’s weaknesses. Team USA will play Russia and Lithuania next week which will give us a better read on the squad.

Team USA, Canada, video, youtube

When Vitamin Water isn’t adding a few zeros to David Wright’s bank account they’re rolling out tight commercials. My favorite is Tracy McGrady tossing the sheep, and coming in a close second is Urlacher and Big Papi playing badminton.

Vitamin Water’s latest ad features stars from MLB (David Ortiz), the NFL (Brian Urlacher and Adrian Peterson), and the NBA (Dwight Howard). Rapper 50 Cent appears alongside the athletes but I’m not sure why. It could be 50′s amateur boxing history, or it could be because Curtis was linked to performance enhancing drugs… Either way, it looks like the astronaut theme is big with athletes this year.

Picture scooped from Thisis50.com by way of Nah Right.

Tags: Vitamin Water, Dwight Howard, Brian Urlacher, Adrian Peterson, David Ortiz, 50 Cent, Picture