Getty Stephen Curry #30 of the Golden State Warriors takes a three-point shot against Dillon Brooks #24 of the Memphis Grizzlies during the second quarter in Game Six of the 2022 NBA Playoffs Western Conference Semifinals at Chase Center on May 13, 2022 in San Francisco, California. (Photo by Ezra Shaw/Getty Images)
The Golden State Warriors sent the Grizzlies packing Friday night but even in defeat, Memphis guard Dillon Brooks won’t stop talking.
The Dubs ended the Grizzlies’ season with a 110-96 victory in Game 6 at San Francisco’s Chase Center on May 13. After the defeat, a defiant Brooks spoke to reporters and exclaimed that his team was “coming” for the Warriors, who he then went on to describe as “getting old.”
“They know we’re going to come every single year,” said Brooks, per Sam Amick of The Athletic. “We’re young and they’re getting old. They know that we are going to come every single year.”
Also speaking after the game, Dubs point guard Steph Curry laughed off Brooks’ comments, citing a separate statement the Grizzlies guard made earlier in the season.
“He’s said a lot of crazy things,” Curry said. “He called himself a dynasty already, so you’ve got to figure. On to the next round. Western Conference finals, we’re back. Let’s go!”
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Brooks Insulted Dubs Wing While Referring to Grizzlies as ‘Dynasty’
GettyGolden State Warriors forward Andre Iguodala will miss at least the start of the Western Conference Finals with a lingering neck injury.
The irony of Brooks’ comments is that the Warriors are actually in the midst of a movement toward getting younger. Over the last two seasons, the team has drafted three lottery picks in center James Wiseman, forward Jonathan Kuminga and guard Moses Moody, all of whom the front office protected this year despite pressures to make a trade for a veteran with a focus on winning in the present.
It wasn’t the first time Brooks has made a puzzling declaration this season, a fact to which Curry alluded in his response detailed above. In late March, following a Grizzlies’ home victory over the Warriors, Brooks called out Andre Iguodala for forcing his way out of Memphis following a trade that sent him there two seasons ago. During his rant, Brooks referred to the Grizzlies as a “dynasty,” despite never having won a playoff series as presently constructed.
“We all had the vision and he didn’t, which is perfect,” Brooks said of the Warriors wingman. “Send him back to the Warriors and let him do his thing over there.”
“From the beginning, we were growing the base. We had a base, and we just kept building and building and building,” Brooks continued. “More guys got on the train, and we were able to create something like this and keep building this dynasty.”
Brooks’ Series Against Golden State Defined by Multiple Dirty Plays
GettyGolden State Warriors guard Gary Payton II (right) celebrates with Steph Curry after a regular season win over the Phoenix Suns.
It was more than just Brooks’ words that were offensive during the Western Conference Semifinals. His actions were considerably worse and vastly more dangerous.
The NBA bounced Brooks from Game 3 after ejecting him midway through the previous contest following a cheap shot on Gary Payton II. Brooks ended the Golden State guard’s postseason after taking a swipe at his face during a fast break in Game 2. Payton attempted to break his fall, fracturing his elbow in the process.
Then late in the first half of Game 6 Friday night, referees hit Brooks with a flagrant foul for pushing Curry in the back during a play for a loose ball and knocking him to the ground.
Brooks’ actions throughout the series were dirty, both by definition and based on the punishments doled out by the league. His assessment of Golden State’s collective age was also at least somewhat off base. However, Brooks did have one thing right. The Grizzlies are a young and upcoming team, and the next several years should hold a number of competitive matchups between Golden State and Memphis within them.
For the rest of the 2022 postseason, however, Brooks and his teammates will be watching from home. The Warriors, on the other hand, will open the Western Conference Finals on Wednesday, May 18 against either the Phoenix Suns or the Dallas Mavericks. Game 7 of that series will be played on Sunday, May 15 at 5 p.m. Western Standard Time on TNT.
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Warriors Curry Hits Back After Grizzlies Brooks Insults Entire Team