Dillon Brooks looked like he entered the Crypto.com Arena with one intention: to snap the Lakers’ seven-game win streak. And he succeeded at doing that by leading the Suns in their 125-108 win over the Lakers.
With Devin Booker injured early in the first half, Brooks got all the liberty to run the offense in his own way. But he also decided to once again become a thorn in the side of LeBron James and Luka Doncic, as even before sealing the win, Brooks began playing mind games with them.
After converting a layup on fast break, Brooks copied LeBron James’ signature shoulder shrug celebration and used it on him. He was seemingly taunting the King that his time, he is the one who will get the last laugh, and he did.
DILLON BROOKS DUNKED ON LEBRON AND MOCKED HIS SHRUG CELLY 😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/C0O9IFiTNH
— BrickCenter (@BrickCenter_) December 2, 2025
The Canadian star finished the game with 33 points, 2 rebounds, and 2 assists, while shooting 57.7% from the field. Meanwhile, James had only 10 points, three assists, and shot 30% from the field.
Brooks also wanted to get inside Doncic’s head and was recorded high-fiving the Slovenian superstar when he went to the free-throw line and made an attempt. Doncic had a hilarious reaction to this incident as he could not help but laugh during the game.
Dillon Brooks high fived Luka after hitting a free throw 😂 pic.twitter.com/qEr1EQMvNs
— Lakers All Day Everyday (@LADEig) December 2, 2025
Luka Doncic finished the game with 38 points, 11 rebounds, and five assists, while shooting 15-of-26 from the field. He also astonishingly had nine turnovers on what one could describe as a careless night from the Slovenian star.
Brooks reportedly also got into a courtside argument with LeBron James that forced the officials to intervene.
LeBron exchanging words with Dillon Brooks during a timeout pic.twitter.com/JFqcv1jhJe
— Lakers Daily (@LakersDailyCom) December 2, 2025
Robert Horry made the correct prediction when he said that Brooks would likely be the X factor for the Suns against the Lakers. The Suns guard has a history with LeBron James, which started in 2023 during the NBA Playoffs when the Grizzlies faced the Lakers, and Brooks said he won’t respect James until he drops 40 on him.
Clearly, Brooks came with the intention to revive that rivalry, but let his game do more of the talking than himself. The Lakers have now fallen to 15-5 for the season and move on to face the Raptors in their next game on Thursday. Meanwhile, the Suns have improved their regular season record to 13-9 after this win and will face the Rockets next on Friday night (December 5).
Considering the form that Dillon Brooks is in, he may even pull off such taunting and trolling against his former team on Friday. He is now averaging a career-high 22.3 points, 3.1 rebounds, and 1.8 assists after his first 16 games this season.
Do you think Dillon Brooks’ trash talk and antics are more acceptable now that he is playing some of the best basketball of his career? Let us know what you think in the comments section.
