From thunderous NBA dunks to graceful ballroom twirls, Dwight Howard’s journey on Dancing with the Stars has been nothing short of a rollercoaster – and no one knows this better than his dance partner, Daniella Karagach. In a remarkable shift of sentiment that mirrors their evolving dance floor dynamics, Karagach has now lauded the basketball legend’s Halloween special performance.

The 31-year-old pro dancer recently took to her Instagram to praise Howard for his determination in Week 6 of the 33rd season of “I’m in awe of you @dwighthoward. It was a tough one with a lot of challenges this week, both mentally and physically. You did that🤝 No words can truly express how proud of you I was in that moment for pushing through and how proud of you I am for showing up every day and giving it your 110%. I couldn’t have asked for anything more. Thank you for being an amazing partner and friend,” wrote Daniella.

The unlikely pairing of the 6’10” former NBA star and the 5’3″ ballroom champion initially raised eyebrows, but their chemistry on the dance floor has produced some memorable moments. From their crowd-pleasing Cha-Cha to salsa on ‘When Can I See You Again‘, the duo has demonstrated that size differences can be transformed into artistic advantages.

However, the path to their current synchronicity hasn’t been smooth.

Karagach recently revealed that working with Howard had triggered anxiety, primarily due to the unprecedented challenges of choreographing routines. “So it wasn’t like we were traveling, and then we had a 5-to-9 rehearsal. It was we were traveling, we had a 5 to 9 rehearsal but he would only show up till 7 to 8 and then because he didn’t know himself what the schedule would be. So, it was just so all over the place.” The 31-year-old reveals that the schedules were so tight they had hardly any time to practice, leaving the perfectionist in Karagach to deal with anxiety.

“It was so much in so little time and usually what happens is that I get to plan on my choreo and if something doesn’t work I can change it and I think I started developing anxiety,” added Karagach during an episode of Lightweights Podcast with Joe Vulpis.

Yet, Howard‘s dedication to improvement and willingness to embrace vulnerability seems to have turned the tide. On the sixth episode of Dancing with the Stars, Howard and Karagach went for a dark-themed dance based on the song Ring Around The Rosie” by District 78. The judges were impressed by the duo’s performance and gave Howard 28 points. Also, during the dance-off, Howard was able to outdo the performances of Ilona Maher, the American rugby union player.

“@distric78 thank you for making this music for us. It was so cool creating with you. Massive thank you to the creative team, wardrobe, camera, lighting and music dept. for everything you put into this dance. Thank you to all who’ve supported and voted. We love you,” wrote Karagach in her Instagram post.

The time Dwight Howard forgot his dance steps

Even after being trained by seasoned professionals, dancers often make mistakes. During the third week of his “Dancing with the Stars” (DWTS) journey, NBA star Dwight Howard faced a significant challenge. While performing a Cha-Cha routine on Soul Train Night, he stumbled and momentarily forgot his steps.

Instead of panicking, Howard showcased remarkable composure by improvising and creating new movements on the spot. During the Lightweights Podcast with Joe Vulpis, Karagach acknowledged Howard’s efforts. “I literally turned around and he was not there and he was just like feeling the music. I was like you know what it’s better than just standing there right? Like kudos to him for not just standing there and freaking out. I loved the fact that he was able to be like – forgot the steps, oh well, let me just make my own thing up,” said Karagach during the podcast.

Despite the stumble, the judges seemed to overlook the error, awarding Howard and his partner Daniella Karagach a total of 23 points. This incident further highlighted Howard’s dedication and commitment to the competition, as he consistently pushed himself to improve his dancing skills.