In the Houston Rockets’ 135-119 win against the Los Angeles Lakers, tempers between the squads flared again. Once again, it was Dillon Brooks in the mix who continued his vendetta against LeBron James and the Lakers. This time, the trash-talking guard got into it with Jarred Vanderbilt. To begin, Brooks hit a full-speed Vanderbilt on the back during a wide-open fastbreak, which led to a nasty fall. Later, Vanderbilt retaliated by poking Brooks in the head, which led to his ejection.
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As per Skip Bayless, Vanderbilt didn’t receive ample from his teammates. On his FS1’s Undisputed show, Bayless expressed that he wanted LeBron James and his Lakers to avenge their teammates’ fall caused by Brooks. Referring to the shove on the back by Brooks, Bayless stated, “The Lakers should have gotten right in Dillon Brooks’ face at that moment to defend their teammate.”
To this, his co-host Keyshawn Johnson asked if the Lakers have someone who can go out and be confrontative in such situations. Bayless then replied, “No, because LeBron[James] is not built that way.” While alluding to LeBron’s lack of aggressiveness in such situations, Bayless also pointed out that retaliating too physically can result in a long-term suspension.
This denied his wish to see someone “decking” Brooks. Bayless expressed, “He[Brooks] deserved to be swung on at that point. I am not advocating, but just saying by the letter of the law.”
During the win against the Lakers, while going for an offensive rebound, Dillon Brooks also hit LeBron James in the face which resulted in a flagrant one and a technical foul. While the Lakers’ stayed away from a major confrontation, it wasn’t the first time Dillon Brooks poked them. He has been doing so since last season.
Dillons Brooks loves getting in the face of LeBron James
When he was a Memphis Grizzlies guard during the 2022-23 season, Brooks started to provoke LBJ. In the first round of the 2023 playoffs, he was trash-talking the forward throughout the series. After a 103-93 win in the second game of the first round, Brooks was asked if it was right to go after one of the most experienced and respected players in the league. To which, he replied, “I don’t care, he is old”.
The guard has held on to this antagonistic attitude even after beginning his Rockets journey. This attitude has transferred right throughout the roster, including the head coach, Ime Udoka. In early December, during a 97-107 loss against the Lakers, Rockets’ Udoka got ejected while he was trash-talking LeBron James. Therefore, the whole team has now built animosity against the NBA”s All-Time Leading Scorer.
As the Regular Season series between the two wrap up, there is a chance that the ninth-seeded Lakers and eleventh-seeded Rockets may cross paths during the Play-in tournament. If that happens, Brooks would once again be in LeBron James’ face. For now, both the teams are going through an abysmal season thus far and need all the aggression on the court but in the right direction.
