The Memphis Grizzlies have informed controversial guard Dillon Brooks that he won’t be brought back “under any circumstances,” according to Shams Charania. Brooks was a second-round pick by the Memphis Grizzlies during the 2017 NBA Draft and has played there since.
Per Charania, Brooks’ antics and poor play during the Grizzlies’ first-round playoff loss to the Los Angeles Lakers were the breaking point for the team.
Over the course of the season, Brooks has made many bizarre comments but none greater than his postgame comments following the Grizzlies Game 2 Win. In which, he called LeBron James “old” and “tired.”
“I poke bears. I don’t respect no one until they come and give me 40 [points].” That, to little surprise, did not go well for him nor the team.”
In a Game 3 loss, Dillon Brooks was ejected for hitting James in the groin, and in a pivotal Game 4 defeat, Brooks was burned twice by James on key buckets at the end of regulation and overtime. On the offensive side of the ball, Brooks’ inability to knock down shots (10-of-42 from 3-point land in the series) caused serious problems for the Grizzlies. Furthermore, he repeatedly declined to speak to reporters toward the end of the series, earning a $25,000 fine.
Not just this season?
While this season’s antics have taken center stage, it’s not the first time that Dillon Brooks has done something out of the ordinary. During the second round of the playoffs last season he delivered a foul that broke Golden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II’s elbow and was suspended for a game. He’s been suspended on multiple occasions this season for technical fouls.
None of those scenarios are good or helpful for a team, but it’s possible for a team to overlook that if the player is producing. Brooks has done exactly that, though this season was rough as he averaged career-lows in field goal percentage (39.6) and finished with his second-lowest points per game mark at 14.6 points.
Brooks is an elite defender, that many competitive teams will want. The flaws are that he can only get your team so far when he can’t make shots and causes problems on and off the court.
Memphis did make contract extension offers to Brooks early in the season, which were rejected and led to the end of talks. It might be best for both sides to get a fresh start.
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