Memphis Grizzlies forward Dillon Brooks said he doesn’t regret his comments about LeBron James despite the spotlight it put on the impending free agent during his team’s first-round series loss to the Los Angeles Lakers.
Brooks called James “old” after the Grizzlies’ win in Game 2 of that series, adding “I poke bears. I don’t respect anyone until they come and give me 40.”
Brooks, who was fined $25,000 by the NBA for not making himself available to the media after all three of the Grizzlies’ road losses in Los Angeles, told reporters on Sunday that he doesn’t think his comments provided extra motivation for James and that he doesn’t regret making them.
“No, that’s who I am,” Brooks said, according to the Memphis Commercial Appeal. “I don’t regret it. I’m a competitor. I compete.”
In the game following those comments about James, Brooks was ejected 17 seconds into the second half when he was called for a flagrant foul 2 after hitting James in the groin area. He shot 31.2% from the floor and 23.8% from 3-point range for the series.
Brooks, 27, is the longest-tenured member of the Grizzlies but is set to hit free agency this summer. Grizzlies general manager Zach Kleiman said he couldn’t comment on the veteran forward’s future with Memphis, but did note that the Grizzlies had to navigate “self-created distractions” during the playoffs.