The beef between LeBron James and Dillon Brooks is slowly becoming one of the more prominent conflicts in the NBA. The drama began to unfold during Game 2 of the first-round series featuring the Lakers and the Memphis Grizzlies. A heated argument erupted between the two teams, and Brooks took the opportunity to engage in fierce trash-talking with LeBron on the court.
Both LeBron and Brooks have become used to calling each other out publicly or putting on a show for the fans to enjoy. However, it was LeBron James who decided to put on a show in front of Brooks during the recent matchup between the LA Lakers and the Houston Rockets.
Brooks brushes off LeBron James’ stare-down
A comical scene unfolded during the pre-game warm-ups ahead of the Los Angeles Lakers and Houston Rockets clash on Saturday night. Dillon Brooks, known for his ritual of staring down the opposing team’s bench, found himself the target of LeBron James’ gaze. However, to everyone’s surprise, the Rockets forward completely ignored LeBron.
It’s a bit hard for the fans to believe that Brooks couldn’t catch a glimpse of LeBron from the corner of his eye during that moment. Nevertheless, he consciously chose to disregard James and carry on with his ritual. Interestingly, this amusing scenario repeated later in the night.
After scoring a challenging one-and-one against Brooks in the first quarter, LeBron returned the favor by giving him a stare-down. This was part of James’ impressive first half, where he contributed 14 points. However, his performance tapered off in the second half.
The 38-year-old finished the game with 16 points, 4 rebounds, 7 assists, 1 steal, and 1 block, contributing to the Lakers’ 107-97 victory. On the other hand, Brooks accumulated 10 points, 2 rebounds, and 1 assist during the contest.
LeBron faced technical foul for Dillon Brooks incident
Dillon Brooks continued his feud with James during the Houston Rockets’ loss to the Los Angeles Lakers on Sunday. The NBA stars clashed in the Lakers’ 105-104 victory, reigniting the well-documented animosity between James, 38, and Brooks, 27. The Lakers hosted the Rockets for another face-off in the season series, with Houston leading 1-0 before the game.
In the third quarter, Brooks fouled James as the four-time NBA champion attempted a drive to the basket off Anthony Davis’ screen. Following the whistle, LeBron tossed the ball away and gave a chest shove to his rival. Although the contact was minimal, the officials deemed it enough to issue a technical foul to the Lakers.
The feud between Brooks and James dates back to the previous year when Brooks, then with the Memphis Grizzlies, called the NBA icon “old” during the 2023 NBA Playoffs. In Game 3, he even delivered a groin hit to LeBron, resulting in his ejection.
Brooks carried the rivalry into the current season, boldly stating his intention to “lock up” James before the Rockets’ 128-94 victory over the Lakers in November. Before the Lakers’ recent win, Brooks affirmed that he had no regrets about his comments from the previous year. “No, I still feel the same way,” he stated on Fox Sports.
Despite the heated exchanges, James secured the 105-104 win for the Lakers with a late free throw, concluding the game with an impressive stat line of 37 points, six rebounds, eight assists, and three steals.
