Four-time NBA champion Shaquille O'Neal didn’t hold back on what he sees the future holding for the NBA’s newest villain, Dillon Brooks.
The Athletic’s Shams Charania reported Monday that the Memphis Grizzlies would not be bringing Brooks back next season “under any circumstances.” During the latest episode of The Big Podcast, the 15-time NBA All-Star bluntly expressed that he believes Brooks will struggle to find another team willing to sign him.
"He didn’t play well enough to be acting like that. Now he's going to be out of the league, or he needs to check himself before he wrecks himself," said O’Neal. "Who’s gonna sign him?”
"He didn’t play well enough to be acting like that… Who’s gonna sign him?” @SHAQ talks Dillon Brooks on #TheBigPodcast: https://t.co/uzGI6OY5zd pic.twitter.com/5RT2lEwIXa
— NBA on TNT (@NBAonTNT) May 2, 2023
Brooks finished tied with Warriors defensive stalwart Draymond Green for the most technical fouls (18) in the NBA this past season.
As well as extensively trash-talking on and off the court with Lakers star LeBron James during Memphis’s first-round series against Los Angeles, Brooks was ejected from Game 3 for striking James in the groin and badly struggled with his shooting.
The six-year NBA veteran shot just 23.8% from three-point range against the Lakers, which O’Neal made sure to highlight: "He's not athletic, he ain't jumping out the gym and his jumper ain't like that."
The former Oregon standout has averaged 14.5 points on the strength of shooting 34.2% from beyond the arc in his six NBA seasons while establishing a reputation as a hard-nosed defender, but it appears he has some work to do after he was exposed against the Lakers.
