Draymond Green and Dillon Brooks’ ugly war of words turned physical when the pair brawled on the court in Thursday’s highly anticipated and spirited Grizzlies-Warriors matchup, just one day after the Warriors forward called out the Grizzlies guard. “clown”.
With just over a minute to go in the first half, Brooks stole a Warriors pass and converted a tough layup on Green after teammate and shooting guard Desmond Bane drilled a midrange shot with the score 57-74. , in favor of the Grizzlies.
When Green got the ball back, he butted heads with Brooks, much to the delight of a sellout crowd at the FedEx Forum, home of the Grizzlies.
Both players showed incredible signs of self-control, especially Brooks, who was shoved in the face by the four-time Warriors All-Star. The Canadian did not seek to engage with his rival, preferring to remain calm for a brief moment.
After Thursday night’s battle, Brooks suggested to TNT’s Jared Greenberg that “I should give Draymond the mic, then we’ll talk about me… keep him talking about me so I can play better.”
Warriors’ Draymond Green and Grizzlies’ Dillon Brooks butt heads during the first half
Then he added: ‘That’s what I do, I talk. said [Draymond] to keep that mic open. He’s still doing his podcast, he’s still blogging, he’s still doing his thing off the court.
‘You know it’s cute, it’s fun for him.’
Brooks, 27, got the last laugh Thursday, with Memphis coming out on top with a memorable 110-131 blowout victory. Green finished with 16 points, seven assists and five rebounds in Thursday’s road loss.
Brooks, for his part, finished the game with 14 points, six assists and four rebounds in 34 minutes of action. Additionally, the Grizzlies and Warriors meet for the last time this season, again in Memphis, on March 18.
In the fourth quarter, Brooks was also seen getting nervous around Steph Curry after the Warriors guard went out of bounds. The pair exchanged words constantly during Thursday night’s contest, as Brooks was given the task of protecting the four-time NBA champion on defense.
Meanwhile, the latest fight between Green and Brooks began last week, when the latter faced off for the 2017 Defensive Player of the Year in an interview with ESPN. The Warriors’ four-time defensive first team waited until Wednesday to respond on their own podcast.
“I don’t like Draymond at all,” Brooks said on March 3. “I just don’t like Golden State. I don’t like having anything to do with them. Draymond talks a lot. He also gets away with it. His game is great, with Golden State, but if you put him somewhere else, you won’t know who Draymond is.
‘He plays with heart, he plays hard, he knows the ins and outs of his defense. I guess that’s why they like it there.
Green responded with a carefully thought out, sentence-by-sentence analysis of Brook’s comments in a two-and-a-half-minute clip that tears at the candid Grizzlies guard.
‘[Brooks] said, “I don’t like Draymond at all.” you don’t know me That’s number one,’ Green said on ‘The Draymond Green Show’ on Wednesday.
“He said, ‘I just don’t like Golden State.’ Frankly, I wouldn’t like a team that beats me all the time either. That is number two. “I don’t want anything to do with them.”
Green & Brooks have issues with each other on and off the pitch as tempers flared on Thursday
On his podcast Wednesday, Green called Brooks a “clown” and said his teammates didn’t like him.
“Frankly, you were a little kid in high school and you watched us win championships. You should be happy that you witnessed that… You are a fan. That’s crazy.
“If you’ve ever wondered why the Memphis Grizzlies aren’t ready to challenge for a championship, look no further than this idiot,” Green said. “In fact, they depend on this guy to help them win a championship, and he says his game is great. Frankly, that shows how little you know about basketball. That’s where it gets really interesting.
‘Your level of understanding of the game of basketball is at the level of an amateur. And you’re going around talking about a dynasty? The dynasty starts after you, not with you. That’s just a fact. I know dynasty players. They are not clowns. That doesn’t work when building a dynasty.
‘Take it from me, I really know! Clowns don’t work building a dynasty.
“I’m trying to figure out why they like you in Memphis,” Green added. Or do they like you in Memphis? I’m not sure your classmates like you. It doesn’t lead to winning. I can tell you why they like me [in Golden State]. When you contribute the way I’ve contributed to winning four championships, they tend to like you.
‘The next time you talk about me, you should do some soul-searching. The next time you talk about me, I hope you’re in a better place than you are right now, where the guys you play with really enjoy playing with you because they really think you’re contributing to winning.