Dillon Brooks has pulled no punches ahead of his first matchup against his former squad, the Memphis Grizzlies. In an interview with the Houston Chronicle, Brooks claimed the Grizzlies are now realizing how valuable he is after his departure, given the different fortunes the Rockets and Grizzlies have enjoyed this season.
“It’s like the girlfriend that you used to have,” Brooks said of the Grizzlies this season without him. “You don’t know how good she is until she’s gone. I don’t worry about the past. I’m here building a future with these guys. I’m here for another three years [after this season] and then some. I want to get the Rockets to get back to the playoffs and the Rockets to be one of the best teams.”
Brooks also took another shot at Memphis by claiming they play without swagger, unlike the Rockets he’s on currently.
“You can see now, they have no swagger. We have swagger. We have an identity we’re building. Each and every game, we show it more and more. That’s what I want for my guys. That’s what I want for each and every guy on the floor, to play their best basketball.”
The Grizzlies cut ties with Brooks in the summer in ruthless fashion, announcing to the media that they would not bring Brooks any ‘under any circumstances‘ after a controversial season where he had major disputes with Draymond Green, Donovan Mitchell, and LeBron James.
The LeBron beef is what likely led to his exit, as the Grizzlies got dominated by the seventh-seeded Lakers with Brooks playing badly. Thankfully, the Rockets recognized Brooks’ ability and appreciated his ability to stand up to LeBron, rewarding him with an $80 million contract that people hated at the time but looks like a great deal now.
Dillon Brooks Thinks The Grizzlies Made Him A Scapegoat
The Grizzlies had a whole host of issues last season. Aside from their center depth being devastated by injuries to Steven Adams and Brandon Clarke, the Grizzlies dealt with all of the negative press Brooks was getting along with Ja Morant’s gun-related suspension. Morant serving another gun suspension for an incident in the summer happened after the season ended and has been the key reason behind Memphis’ struggles this season.
Brooks believes he was made a scapegoat for the team’s failures last season when many of the issues that plague them right now existed last year as well.
“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. 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.”
Brooks is averaging 13.9 points, 3.9 rebounds, and 1.9 assists and is a key member of the Rockets, hoping to turn that situation into a winning one.
The Grizzlies, on the other hand, are over halfway done with Morant’s suspension and will soon have him back in their rotation. But their 3-10 record will be hard to overcome for the playoff fight, especially with Smart, Adams, Clarke, and more being out with injury.
We sincerely appreciate and respect you as a reader of our site. It would help us a lot if you follow us on Google News because of the latest update.
Thanks for following us. We really appreciate your support.
