Dillon Brooks Hypes Rockets, Says They're 'Exactly' Like Grizzlies 3-4 Years Ago
Dillon Brooks sees a lot of parallels between his new team and the one he just left.
Speaking to Jackson Gatlin of Locked on Rockets, Brooks explained the Houston Rockets roster he's joining is "exactly" like the Memphis Grizzlies from three-to-four years ago.
At this point four years ago, the Grizzlies had Jaren Jackson Jr. going into his second season and just drafted Ja Morant with the No. 2 overall pick.
The 2019-20 Grizzlies increased their winning percentage by more than six percent from the previous season (33-49 to 34-39). They built off that success by making the playoffs the following year for the first time since 2016-17.
Over the past two seasons, Memphis' 107 regular-season wins are the fourth-most in the NBA.
The Rockets are certainly hoping they can follow that path. Jalen Green, Jabari Smith Jr. and Amen Thompson have all been drafted with a top-four pick in each of the past three years.
While none of those players has yet proven themselves to be a potential franchise superstar, it's still very early in their development process to make any long-term proclamations about their abilities.
Houston's front office is hoping to expedite the rebuilding process after signing Brooks and Fred VanVleet in free agency.
The end of Brook's tenure in Memphis, where he played for the past six seasons, was marred by a series of headlines about his on-court controversies and calling out players like Draymond Green and LeBron James.
Before those issues, though, Brooks was a valuable player for the Grizzlies because of his defensive versatility.
The 27-year-old certainly needs to stop shooting the ball as much as he has (14.8 field-goal attempts per game over the past four seasons), but he can give the Rockets an identity on defense that's been sorely lacking for a long time.
