Dwight Howard honors young fan who died Monday

Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard honored James Fisher, a young boy who died after a battle with terminal brain cancer, with an Instagram video on Monday.

Houston Rockets center Dwight Howard honored James Fisher, a young boy who died on Monday after a battle with brain cancer, with an Instagram video.

Howard posted the video with the accompanying caption: "Rest in peace lil James Fisher. He passed away a couple hours ago. He was the little kid I picked up to dunk a couple of months ago during pregame warmups. He also gave me the rubber band that says James strong. He was such an inspiration to me and my teammates. I have worn the band everyday since he gave it to me and I will continue to wear this band. You are in a better place. No more pain. No more hospital visits. Just peace love and happiness. And you can dunk as many times as u want. See u in heaven James."

Howard and Fisher met in December, when Howard helped seven-year-old Fisher dunk a basketball before the Rockets' game against the Phoenix Suns at the Toyota Center on Dec. 6.

On a Facebook page set up on Fisher's behalf, his family encouraged funeral visitors to arrive wearing jeans and a Houston Texans jersey or Rockets t-shirt since Fisher "loved" those two teams.

We don't know funeral arrangements. But we do know that James loved the Texans and the Rockets.. The funeral will be...

Posted by James Fisher's Journey on Monday, March 30, 2015

Howard returned to the court last week after missing 26 games with a knee injury. The 29-year-old center is averaging 15.9 points, 10.6 rebounds and 1.3 blocks per game this season.

- Mike Fiammetta