Dillon Brooks will not face any punishment from the league for his actions during the Memphis Grizzlies’ 111-101 loss to the Los Angeles Lakers in Game 3 of their first-round series. According to Adrian Wojnarowski. Brooks declined to speak to the media Saturday following the game.
Just 17 seconds into the second half of Game 3, Brooks was ejected for striking LeBron James in the groin. James writhed on the ground in obvious pain, and the officials went back to play to determine if further action was necessary. They quickly called Brooks for a flagrant-2 foul, ejecting him from the game in the process.
Watch the drama:
It’s the latest incident this postseason in which a player has been assaulted in the area. In Game 3 of the series between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Brooklyn Nets, James Harden was ejected for striking Royce O’Neal in the groin late in the third quarter of the Philadelphia victory. Earlier in the game, Joel Embiid received a flagrant foul for kicking Nick Claxton in the groin, but was not ejected. It’s not the first time James has been hit in that area in the playoffs. In 2016, Draymond Green was infamously suspended for Game 5. NBA Finals after being assessed a flagrant foul for hitting James in the groin in Game 4.
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Green’s recent suspension for Game 3 between the Golden State Warriors and Sacramento Kings may also be instructive here. The NBA Part of the decision to suspend Green was based on his history of committing similar crimes in the past, he noted in his suspension. Brooks has a similar history. He was ejected for Game 2 of last season’s series between the Grizzlies and Warriors for a nasty hit on Gary Payton II, then suspended for Game 3 of that series. He was suspended for one game in March for his 16th technical foul of the season. He Expelled For hitting Donovan Mitchell in the groin in a game against the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier in the year.
Brooks and James had a heated streak in the press. Brooks said before the postseason began that he wanted to face James in the first round So he can “Knock him out at once.” After Game 2, Brooks backed up his trash talk on James By saying “I don’t care, he’s old.”
