Dillon Brooks gets honest on ugly Grizzlies season after dominant World Cup performance
Trailing through three quarters in an elimination game, Dillon Brooks — yes, that Dillon Brooks — put Canada on his back, helping guide the national team to an 88-85 win over Spain.
Coming off a horrendous showing where he scored just two points in the team's loss to Brazil two days prior, Brooks answered the bell on Sunday. In what he confirmed to Eurohoops as the best performance of his professional career, the Canada swingman was dominant on both ends of the court, scoring 22 points, pulling down five boards and serving as a menace defensively.
After the crucial win, Brooks commended the national team for helping rejuvenate him, pulling the curtains back ever so slightly on his tumultuous final season with the Memphis Grizzlies.
“Coming off a tough year with my old squad [the Memphis Grizzies] it was great having a refresh with Canadian blood,” Brooks said. “Guys who believe in me. Guys who trust in me. It was great to win this game in a great fashion.”
After six seasons in Memphis, Brooks was unceremoniously shipped off to Houston this offseason in a sign-and-trade deal with the Rockets. According to Shams Charania of The Athletic, the organization's breaking point with their then-longest tenured player came during their playoff loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
During the series, Brooks called LeBron James "old" and suggested he was no longer the player he used to be. He followed his viral comments by getting ejected in Game 3 for hitting James in the groin. After the incident, he opted not to speak to the media, resulting in a $25,000 fine by the NBA.
After a career-high 18.4 ppg in 2021-22, the 27-year-old saw his scoring average dip by 4.1 ppg last season while shooting a career-worst 39.6% from the field. His shooting prowess was even more spotty in the postseason, where Brooks knocked down just 23.8% of his attempts from beyond the arc — third-worst among players who averaged at least 27.0 minutes per game.
Now in Houston with an $86 million contract backing him, Brooks will look to rewrite the negative narrative that plagued him during his run in Memphis. While Brooks will almost certainly continue on his villain arc with the Rockets, returning to his pre-2022-23 form will make his antics more bearable.
More must-reads: