Grizzlies’ Dillon Brooks fined for skipping postgame media availability

Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks was fined $25,000 by the NBA on Sunday for failing to participate in team postgame media availability. Here’s what you need to know:

The following was released by the NBA:

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 30, 2023

The Athletic’s instant analysis:

How Brooks’ series went down

• Game 1, Grizzlies lost: Brooks spoke postgame and said he’s hurting for Ja Morant, who injured his hand.
• Game 2, Grizzlies won: Brooks, unprovoked, calls James “old,” “tired” and says he’s not as good as he used to be. It’s on now.
• Game 3, Grizzlies lost: Brooks, ejected for punching James in the crotch, declined specific interview requests from me and from ESPN — security leads him out of the arena (in Los Angeles).
• Sunday off day: Brooks addressed not being suspended and said the media and fans portray him as a villain. He also said everything he said about James was true.
• Game 4, Grizzlies lost: Brooks and Morant skip out on media. Brooks had a miserable game, blew one help assignment on James and James went straight through him for the dagger bucket in overtime.
• Game 5, Grizzlies won: He spoke and vowed to “keep shooting.”
• Game 6, Grizzlies lose: The series ended. Brooks, a looming free agent, is fined from the locker room and hallway in Los Angeles before we even get there.

Multiple violations, he should have been fined by the league and team. — Vardon

Backstory

Brooks averaged 14.3 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.6 assists per game for the Grizzlies in 2022-23, who finished the year as the Western Conference’s No. 2 seed.

Advertisement

Since being drafted No. 45 in the 2017 NBA Draft, Brooks has started 318 games for Memphis and developed a reputation as a hard-nosed defender.

He struggled in the series against Los Angeles, averaging 10.5 points on 31.2 percent shooting from the field and 23.8 percent from 3. He scored 10 points on 11 shots in Game 6.

Required reading

(Photo: Justin Ford / Getty Images)