HOUSTON — No one has to remind Dillon Brooks that he has four opportunities to beat the Memphis Grizzlies this season. His first two games have been wins, but both came in Houston.
Brooks, who joined the Rockets this past offseason after playing his first six seasons with the Grizzlies, will make his return to FedExForum Friday night, with a contingent of friends and family there as well.
“I can’t wait to get back out there playing,” he said. “This has been circled out there on my schedule.”
Brooks was one of the most polarizing players with the Grizzlies. He set the tone defensively and earned an NBA second-team All-Defensive nod in his final year in Memphis. That 2022-23 season also was capped by one of the worst shooting stretches of his career in the team’s first-round playoffs series loss against the Los Angeles Lakers.
Where Brooks stood out in Memphis was his ability to challenge teammates. He was constructively critical of Jaren Jackson Jr., daring him to play tougher and become more of a dog.
The two had their battles in Wednesday’s 117-104 Rockets win against the Grizzlies. Brooks was physical, attempting to outmuscle Jackson whenever they were matched up in the post, but Jackson met the challenge. He finished with a career-high 44 points on 15-for-24 shooting.
“I’ve been seeing it my whole career, the flashes,” Brooks said. “With the injuries and all that, it’s hard to get back to where you’re supposed to be. That’s the type of relentlessness, the aggressiveness that he needs to play with every single game for them to win games.”
HIs impact in Memphis goes beyond how he challenged Jackson. It applies to the young Grizzlies wings, too. After Brooks’ first game against the Grizzlies, he and Ziaire Williams exchanged jerseys. David Roddy was someone who Brooks often spent individual time with to hone his craft as a defender.
Vince Williams Jr. wasn’t in the rotation in that first matchup, but he was on the court Wednesday. When Brooks made an early 3-pointer that Williams contested, he gave Williams a tap on the back while going back up the floor.
“I feel like he helped me a lot on the defensive end, and then offensively, because he’s a good defensive player,” Williams said.
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Grizzlies head of sports medicine Eric Oetter is among the people Brooks is most excited to see. They spent time together when Brooks was rehabbing through injuries. Oetter didn’t make the trip to Houston for either of the past two games.
“I miss him,” Brooks said. “He’s been there throughout my whole career. I can’t wait to see him when I get there.”
He played a major role in the Grizzlies going from a 22-win team in 2017-18, his rookie year, to winning 50-plus games and finishing as a top-two seed in each of his last two seasons in Memphis.
Will he get a tribute video? Will there be cheers? Or will there be boos after his recent comments about being a scapegoat and the Grizzlies not having swagger?
Truly, Brooks doesn’t know what to expect.
“I’m excited,” he said. “I miss the Forum. I just can’t wait to get out there, shoot on the court and see what it’s all about. We’ll see what happens.”