Dillon Brooks played his first game against the Memphis Grizzlies in Memphis on Friday night and fittingly, hit the dagger three-pointer to help secure a 103-96 win for the Houston Rockets. After the game, Brooks was keen to state that the Grizzlies made a mistake by letting him go.
“I don’t wanna lose to Memphis ever in my career,” Brooks said. “Regardless of how we get it. If I go get 20 or if I have 0 points, I wanna win every single time we play Memphis. Just to let ’em know that they made a little mistake.”
Dillon Brooks: "I don't wanna lose to Memphis ever in my career … I wanna win every single time we play Memphis, just to let 'em know that they made a little mistake."pic.twitter.com/LX54hfolQZ
— Dime (@DimeUPROXX) December 16, 2023
Well, he is off to a great start with regard to that goal of never losing to the Grizzlies. This was the third time that the Rockets played them this season, and they have won all three games.
For a while, it looked like this might be the first defeat, though, as Memphis had a 17-point lead at one stage in the first half. The Grizzlies also led 55-45 at the half, but Brooks then took over. The 27-year-old scored 24 points in the second half and ended the night with 26 points, 7 rebounds, 1 assist, and 1 steal.
He certainly had a point to prove on the night that they messed up by letting him go. The Grizzlies probably do have some regrets about it at this point.
Dillon Brooks Felt The Grizzlies Made Him The Scapegoat Last Season
While Brooks will cherish his time in Memphis, there is a lot he seems to be unhappy about regarding his exit and last season. Earlier this season, Brooks called out the Grizzlies for making him the scapegoat.
“What I didn’t like about Memphis was they allowed that so they can get out of the woodwork, and then I’m the scapegoat of it all,” said Brooks. “That’s what I didn’t appreciate. And then ultimately they’ll come to me on the low, as men, one on one and tell me something, but then not defend me when everything went down.”
It did seem like he was being scapegoated. There was also that infamous report that stated the Grizzlies would not bring back Brooks under any circumstances. I don’t think anyone could blame him for being a bit upset once things like that start leaking out to the media.
Brooks also used an interesting girlfriend analogy when talking about his exit from the Grizzlies, as he stated that you might not know how good things are until that person leaves your life.
Dillon Brooks’ Message To The Haters
The Grizzlies’ loss in terms of letting Brooks go has been the Rockets’ gain. He has proven to be a fine addition so far and Brooks had a message after this revenge game against the Grizzlies.
“That’s why they paid me 4 for $80 million.”
The Rockets had been mocked for giving Brooks that deal in free agency, but he has been worth every penny so far. He has excelled on the defensive end and is averaging 13.8 points, 3.6 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 0.9 steals per game this season.
Thanks to him and the arrival of Ime Udoka as head coach, the Rockets now have a defensive rating of 107.4, which ranks second in the NBA. This win over the Grizzlies also improved them to 13-9 on the season and it sure looks like the Rockets will be in contention for the play-in spots come the end of the season.
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