Dillon Brooks Thinks Grizzlies ‘Have No Swagger’
Dillon Brooks has cemented himself as one of the biggest trash-talkers in the NBA. Once again, he didn’t hold back when he was asked to share his thoughts about playing against the Grizzlies, his former team.
“You can see now, they have no swagger,” Brooks said, according to the Houston Chronicle’s Jonathan Feigen. “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.”
“It’s like the girlfriend that you used to have,” Brooks said. “You don’t know how good she is until she’s gone.”
Like it or not, Dillon Brooks is right. Although Ja Morant is suspended for the first 25 games of the season, this Grizzlies team feels different … not in a good way. They are off to a rough 3-10 start and their defensive rating ranks No. 17 leaguewide; for perspective, they placed No. 3 in that category and played with more energy. Brooks was a spark plug and a gritty defensive player, despite some horrible offensive outings.
The Grizzlies are missing Brooks’s style of play and it is painfully obvious. The Rockets are looking like a play-in team this year and you can partially thank Brooks for that. The decision for the Grizzlies to pass on re-signing Brooks may have not been so smart after all. Players like him make the team more exciting to watch and provide a boost on the court when it is needed.
You can compare Dillon Brooks to Draymond Green, which is ironic because they despise each other. Both players are the heart and soul of the team and usually anchor the defense. They can also give you some points here and there, but oftentimes, their contributions don’t show up on the stat sheets.
At the end of the day, players like Brooks and Green are good for teams. The Grizzlies lost a piece of their identity and their current record is reflecting that. They better hope that Ja Morant can salvage the season and bring back the energy in Memphis.
