Dillon Brooks of the Grizzlies decided he wanted to lash out at LeBron James and his groin in a viral video
Dillon Brooks, a player for the Memphis Grizzlies, was kicked out of Game 3 of the Lakers-Grizzlies playoff series after elbowing LeBron James in the groyne.
As James dribbled the ball upcourt early in the second half of the Lakers’ 111-101 victory at Crypto.com Arena, Brooks—the Grizzlies opponent who called James “old” after Game 2—placed an open backhand into James’ groyne region.
James writhed on the court for a while before standing up again. When officials reviewed the play and saw that Brooks had also committed a flagrant foul 2, he was immediately dismissed.
The sold-out crowd applauded and jeered as Brooks left the stage.
Dillon Brooks ejected after hitting LeBron James in the groin during game 3, video goes viral
Dillon Brooks has been ejected after hitting LeBron James in the groin pic.twitter.com/SPTRq6heO4
— Action Network (@ActionNetworkHQ) April 23, 2023
James led the Lakers to a 35-9 first-quarter victory over the Grizzlies while Brooks had a limited impact. He finished the first half with a crowd-pleasing travelling violation and a 3-for-13 field goal performance.
He was then struck in the groyne with 11:43 left in the third quarter.
The Grizzlies were unable to quite close the gap because of their poor start, but they never gave up behind Ja Morant’s leadership.
In his injury comeback, Morant set a game best with 45 points, including a run of 22 straight Grizzlies points. James finished the game with 25 points, 9 rebounds, and 5 assists. Anthony Davis led the Lakers with 31 points.
Los Angeles Lakers now lead the series 2-1.
Saturday’s game ended, and Brooks chose not to speak with the media. When questioned about Brooks’ firing, Grizzlies coach Taylor Jenkins had only one response: “Officials made a call.”
James Harden of the Philadelphia 76ers was also dismissed from Game 3 on Wednesday, much like Brooks.
Harden was given a flagrant foul number two after it was determined that he elbowed Royce O’Neale of the Nets in the groyne when he was attempting to get separation on a drive.
Meanwhile, despite the notion that basketball is a game played within the lines, the Lakers and Grizzlies spent a good portion of Game 3 dangerously close to doing so.
Because this was 48 minutes of two teams chatting and making jokes, the night was on the verge of falling apart from the first tip.
In the end, the home team and arena were happy thanks to two victory over the swagger-loving Grizzlies and their obnoxious guard, Dillon Brooks.