Dillon Brooks has spent years being defined by trash talk, viral moments, and the “villain” label — but he is a culture setter.
Everywhere he goes, he sets a standard of winning and toughness. But this season, the conversation finally needs to shift to what he’s actually producing on the court.
Brooks is playing the best basketball of his career, and the impact goes far deeper than the box score. If we’re being honest, Brooks has checked every box that typically earns a player serious All-Star consideration: efficiency, elite two-way production, winning impact, and consistency. From his time with the Memphis Grizzlies to the Houston Rockets, Brooks always brings it on both sides of the ball.
Now in his first year with the Phoenix Suns, he has increased his scoring output. With this type of production, he should get a nod for the All-Star game in Los Angeles in February.
Dillon Brooks’ Scoring Increase
Brooks has always been the steady vet on the defensive end, but this season, he’s added in a scoring punch.
He is averaging 21.7 points, shooting 44.3% on 18.1 attempts per game (all career-highs). He was never asked to be a 20-point-per-game scorer in the past.
With this current Suns team, there are not a lot of scorers outside of Devin Booker and Jalen Green (who has only played two games), so Brooks has had to step up and he’s been delivering.
Finding a New Home
The move that sent Dillon Brooks and Jalen Green to Phoenix was shocking. The Rockets had just returned to the playoffs for the first time post-James Harden and it was looking like they had a core that they could continue to grow.
Despite his importance to that Rockets team, nobody expected Brooks to have these kind of scoring numbers.
He has three 30-point games already this season. Two of them were back-to-back, scoring 32 against the Pacers and 34 against the Hawks.
The Suns are in the playoff hunt early in the season, sitting at 14-11 which is good for the No. 7 seed in the West.
A lot can happen with the standings from now until April, but Brooks is doing everything he can to build a winning culture in the Valley of the Sun. With all that he is delivering on, he should be an All-Star.
Draymond Green even believes Brooks deserves a trip to the game as well:
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