Dillon Brooks and the Memphis Grizzlies staved off elimination from the 2023 NBA Playoffs on Wednesday night by blowing out the Los Angeles Lakers.
Brooks struggled yet again in Game 5 of the series, going 3-for-15 from the field and 2-for-10 from beyond the arc. Despite those shooting struggles, he’s still confident in his ability to turn things around.
“I’m used to a certain standard for myself. … One of these games I’m going to break out for three or four threes and change the game.” 👀
– Dillon Brooks
(Via @DamichaelC ) pic.twitter.com/rBqqvwCXqg
— NBACentral (@TheDunkCentral) April 27, 2023
Through the first five games of the first-round series against the Lakers, Brooks is recording 10.6 points, 2.8 rebounds and 1.8 assists per game on a troubling 30.3 percent shooting from the field and 21.6 percent shooting from 3-point range.
While the University of Oregon product is a key cog in the team’s rotation, the Grizzlies have been better off without him on the court against the Lakers.
With Brooks on the court in the first round of the playoffs, the Grizzlies have a net rating of -6.4. That changes to 7.7 when he is off the court.
Brooks’ defensive numbers against the Lakers in the playoffs are also alarming. The former second-round pick has struggled to contain a number of Lakers players, most notably LeBron James and Austin Reaves.
The 27-year-old took some shots at James following Memphis’ Game 2 win, and they’ve seemingly backfired on him. Perhaps Brooks does have a solid performance in him for this series.
Memphis could certainly use it as it looks to fight back from a 3-2 deficit, with Game 6 of the series taking place in Los Angeles on Friday night.
Should Game 7 be necessary, it would take place in Memphis on Sunday. The Lakers will surely want to take care of business at home in order to get some rest.
Something interesting to note regarding Brooks is that he might be playing his final games for the Grizzlies. One NBA insider recently stated that he isn’t sure Brooks is on the team past this series.
“They’ve tried to move on from Dillon Brooks already,” ESPN’s Tim MacMahon said recently. “I don’t know if Dillon Brooks is on this team after this series. We’ll see if the Grizzlies can come back and win it. I certainly don’t know if he’s on this team after free agency this summer.”
Brooks was recently linked to the Houston Rockets, so perhaps he’ll actually end up leaving the Grizzlies this summer. Only time will tell, but he’s undoubtedly more focused on helping the Grizzlies get past the Lakers.
