Dillon Brooks continued to “disturb” the Los Angeles Lakers, violently fouling LeBron James
Dillon Brooks’s very unnecessary swing at LeBron James’s head caused him to be flagged for a rough foul, adding a bit of “drαmα” to the encounters between the two sides.
Since the encounter at the 2023 NBA Playoffs, now every clαsh between LeBron James and Dillon Brooks has notable sideline situations.
The Los Angeles Lakers marched to the Houston Rockets’ field with 5 wins in the last 7 matches, including a 2-overtime win against Golden State on January 28. Rockets are the opposite with only 2 wins in the past 7 matches before meeting the Lakers.
However, Houston successfully protected its home field advantage, took the initiative with a gap that sometimes reached the 30-point mark and then defeated the higher-rated team with a final score of 135-119.
Although the Los Angeles Lakers were rated higher, they lost to the Houston Rockets with a score of 135-119
This created an opportunity for Dillon Brooks to boldly criticize LeBron James, whom he publicly criticized for being old and said he would not respect until he scored 40 points.
In a situation where Dillon made a difficult throw right in front of LeBron to increase the gap to 25 points, the camera lens caught the image of the 30-year-old player celebrating and “trashtalking” quite humorously.
James on the other side of the вαттℓє line did not respond and just shook his head slightly. He knows that the match score is not in favor of the Lakers and the goal of a comeback is still ahead.
Dillon Brooks’ “tease” and the subsequent violent foul of the Houston Rockets defender with LeBron James
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Not stopping there, LeBron James and Dillon Brooks were also involved in another collision. The ball happened in the middle of the fourth quarter when the Lakers were gradually shortening the score, LeBron and Dillon both jumped high to compete for rebounds.
What’s unusual is that LeBron’s hand was aimed at the ball, while Dillon Brooks’ hand had an extra movement when swinging straight at James’ face on the way to the ground.
The ball collided with LeBron’s head, causing him to lie on the ground. At the same time, the officials reviewed the situation for an additional penalty. The decision was made that Dillon Brooks committed a first-degree flagrant foul.
Although LeBron James reacted harshly and said that Brooks should be disqualified for a level 2 foul, the officials did not change their choice.
About 2 minutes after this foul, the Los Angeles Lakers “raised the white flag” against the Houston Rockets by withdrawing the entire main squad.
LeBron James had 23 points (9-15 FG) with 10 assists and 6 rebounds. Besides Anthony Davis and D’Angelo Russell each scoring 23 points, the “king” did not have any significant help from the secondary squad.
Meanwhile, Dillon Brooks (17 points, 7-12 FG) was better supported with 4 teammates scoring over 18 points, led by 34 points from Jalen Green and 31 points from Alperen Sengun.
Five different Rockets players scored over 17 points, led by Jalen Green (No. 4) with 34 PTS along with 12 rebounds and 7 assists
After 4 encounters this season, Dillon Brooks and the Houston Rockets had 2 victories, and LeBron James and the Lakers also won 2 matches. Every confяontatιon between the two sides has a technical foul or a rough foul, which shows that Dillon Brooks and LeBron James still have some hatred for each other.
In addition to LeBron James, on the Lakers side, there is another player influenced by Dillon Brooks, Jarred Vanderbilt. Due to not being able to keep calm after Brooks’ тяι¢к, the Lakers striker reacted and was disqualified for two technical fouls.