Magic center Dwight Howard got the chance to spend time with Bill Russell prior to Game 1 of the NBA Finals.

Howard has always been a fan of Russell's, even though the Boston legend's career ended before "Superman" became a star.

Orlando's stud even enjoyed reading "Russell Rules."

"It brought me a little bit closer to him just by reading that book and knowing who he was off the court and how he approached the game of basketball," Howard told the Associated Press on Saturday. "He was always about team first, and basically I'm the same way. My team, that's the only thing that matters to me.

"Him and Wilt (Chamberlain) were the only two big men that I always wanted to meet besides Patrick (Ewing). I never had a chance to meet Wilt, but probably the closest person to Wilt was Bill Russell."