Canadians in the NBA Roundup: Dillon Brooks becoming an elite defender

The Memphis Grizzlies are one of the best stories of the 2022-23 NBA season. Currently tied for first place in the Western Conference at 25-13, the young, fun Grizzlies have an undeniable swagger that travels with them everywhere they go. And while most of the attention has been on the jaw-dropping athleticism of Ja Morant, the real secret to the Grizzlies' success is their defence, currently ranked third in the NBA.

And nobody deserves more credit for that than 26-year-old Mississauga, Ont. native Dillon Brooks.

Over the Grizzlies' last four games, all wins, Brooks has been in charge of defending Pascal Siakam, Zion Williamson, De’Aaron Fox, and LaMelo Ball, four completely different offensive stars. At 6-foot-7, 225-pounds, Brooks has the physical stature to guard almost anyone in the league. And, perhaps more importantly, he has the basketball IQ and mentality to take pride in doing so. 

“I think [defence comes down to] two things,” Brooks tells me inside Scotiabank Arena before the Grizzlies’ 119-106 win over the Toronto Raptors. “One: the willingness of yourself to play defense because everybody can play defense in this league — It's a matter of if you want to do it. And it's hard to play on both ends.”

“And then two: It's the physical aspect of yourself — you have long arms or you're strong or whatnot. And [that’s when] you get the really great defenders.”

Brooks is averaging 17.3 points, 3.4 rebounds and 2.7 assists on 41/35/80 shooting while leading the Grizzlies in minutes played and placing second in field goal attempts, so there is no doubt he is playing both ends of the floor. But it’s his competitive nature and the pride he takes on the defensive end that stands out to his coaches, who lean on Brooks to set the tone for his teams with his energy, grit, and determination. 

“Really good competitor,” Nick Nurse, who coaches Brooks with the Canadian national team, says about what stands out. “That’s right at the top of Dillon’s [profile]. He’s feisty. He really competes. That spreads to a lot of his teammates. He does it in a lot of ways. He can really guard.”

“Great competitor, first and foremost,” Grizzlies head coach Taylor Jenkins adds. “When I talk about defence, you've got to look beyond just what happens on the court night and night out: It's the preparation, the care factor. 

“Those guys in particular really take it to heart that they want to be good on understanding personnel in this league, what other teams are doing, where they can make an impact. No matter what's called for them, no matter what the matchup is, no matter what the coverage is. Those guys study a lot of film, they take care of their bodies, which is really impressive to be durable to take on those matchups. But it's a care factor that really jumps out and the competitors behind it.”

Brooks says he comes into every season with the same goal: to make one of the NBA’s All-Defensive teams, recognized as one of the best defenders in the league. He has been guarding the opponent's best player for the past three or four years and has gotten better at the little things, including not fouling or getting overly physical. 

But the main thing for Brooks is that he does his work before the game, watching copious amounts of film on whichever team and player he is going to be guarding that night, even letting the film run in the background in the locker room as he goes through his pregame routine. Brooks says the key to holding stars in check is “knowing your personnel. Knowing their tendencies. And doing the film work.”

“I’m always having a body on them. Always giving them physical hits. Trying to be just stuck on them like a sticker. On them all the time,” Brooks says about why he is able to frustrate opposing players so often. “And then just playing smart as well. You can play physical and get out of hand — I feel like two years ago that was me. And now I'm just smarter about it, picking and choosing when I do those. And then ultimately staying in front. That's what really frustrates guys is when they can't get by you and they gotta settle for a step back or they are going straight to their go-to [move] and they can't hit it, that's the most frustrating part about it. 

“And then I talk a little bit of smack too on top of that. Most guys don't like it but that's just my game.”

Brooks’ knowledge of the league and all its star players doesn’t only allow him to play lockdown defence individually — it helps his teammates get stops, too. 

Jaren Jackson Jr., who leads the league in blocks per game and placed fifth in voting for the Defensive Player of the Year award last season, said Brooks has been the best defender in the league for some time now, but that “people just get to see it now because we’re on TV.”

Brandon Clarke said “playing with Brooks is great because he's a guy that I can kind of trust every night. I know that he's gonna show up with his defense every night so it really makes — it's a very long season —so it really makes playing every game that much more fun, and really gives me something to get up for.”

And Morant, who carries the load for the Grizzlies on the offensive end, said Brooks is “the head of the snake on the defensive end for us.” Adding that he “guards the best player, takes on that challenge every single day. And what people don't realize is how smart he is defensively and how much film he watches on the other team. Whatever play call they call, he is telling us the whole play out there and who the play is coming to. That gives us an edge and also knowing what to look for out there.”

Despite only being 26 and in his sixth season, Brooks is the longest-tenured member of the youthful Grizzlies, and he has evolved into one of their most prominent leaders on and off the court. Brooks is always talking, telling teammates where to be and setting an example with his hard-nosed style of play. And he has learned that you have to talk to different people in different ways, as some people respond well to yelling, while others need to be taken to the side for a calm chat. 

“He's a tone-setter for us,” Jenkins says. “I love seeing the leadership… He's embraced the city, embraced the culture that the Grizzlies stand for on and off the floor. But then he just wears that hard hat every single day, comes to work, sets an example for his teammates.”

“The voice has grown year after year. And just that confidence to be able to push his team to the next level knowing that he can get pushed to the next level. So I'm very impressed with what he's done.”

Unfortunately, when people hear the word “confidence” associated with Dillon Brooks, they tend to think about his shot selection rather than his positive leadership or stifling defence. After all, Brooks has never been afraid to let it fly, currently taking 15.5 field goal attempts per game and a career-high 6.3 three-point attempts while shooting a subpar 34.6 percent from three. 

His shot selection has been criticized in the media, but someone has to take the shots. And, at the end of the day, all that really matters is how his teammates feel about the shots Brooks is taking. And it’s safe to say they feel pretty good.

“We don't care,” Morant interrupted as I asked about Brooks’ shot selection. “We don't care… we’re the Grizzlies so they can say he’s taking whatever shots, they can say I take whatever shots. We don't have to worry about that.”

“I don't really care about what analysts think because I guard my ass off every single night. I give my heart every single night,” Brooks said. “My guys can live with some of the shots I take and I'm learning and growing in that. I watch film all the time and my coaches are on me about being more of a playmaker… I try to shoot the open ones and work on my game every single day to be confident in my shots.”

When I asked Jenkins if he thinks Brooks’ game is misunderstood, he said “I definitely think so.” Adding: “You want him on your team. He's the ultimate competitor. He’s the ultimate pro. He wants to do everything possible to help the team win… he does everything with unselfish nature. He wants to be aggressive when it comes to play-making, scoring, defending, leading, holding teammates accountable, holding himself accountable. 

“That's what you want on your team.”

Brooks and Clarke in the red and white? 

Dillon Brooks and his teammate Brandon Clarke have played together for the Grizzlies since 2019-20, the longest-standing pair of Canadian teammates in the NBA beside Lu Dort and Shai Gilgeous-Alexander in Oklahoma City, who also joined forces in 2019.

The two of them have a special connection that goes back to that season, relating to each other about their Canadian upbringings despite being brought up on opposite coasts. While Clarke left the country when he was three to move from Vancouver, B.C. to Phoenix, Arizona, he is still a Canadian citizen and considers Canada home, saying “I still kind of get a bunch of crap because I did move to the states when I was younger. But I'll pretty much always claim Canada because that's how I was raised. I was raised to always claim it. I was raised by my parents, who are from here.”

But one area where Brooks and Clarke differ is when it comes to representing their country for the Canadian national team. When the 14-player “summer core” was released last summer, Brooks was on the list but Clarke was not. 

While Clarke has never played for the national team, he hasn’t ruled it out, saying he had a busy summer last year where he had to prioritize working on his game, so it wasn’t a good time to commit three straight summers to the national program. However, Clarke said that “I'm still kind of on the edge about that. It kind of [depends on] my health. But that is something that I do want to do at some point though. It’s something that I want to possibly get into,” perhaps after this three-year cycle, Clarke explained.

Brooks, on the other hand, has played for Team Canada since he was a teenager, representing the country at every level until finally making the senior team. While Brooks is a part of the 14-player “summer core,” he was the only unexcused absence during the first training camp this past summer. However, he did show up to the second training camp and Nick Nurse said that he did “partake in what he needed to as far as what we agreed with those guys, so that's positive.” Adding that “I hope he’s in. He's a heck of a player.”

However, Brooks is set to become an unrestricted free agent at the end of this summer — with him and the Grizzlies failing to come to terms with a contract extension this past offseason — meaning he has no financial security beyond this season. Because of his precarious contract status, Brooks says he will “probably” play in the 2023 FIBA World Cup this upcoming summer, where Canada will hope to qualify for the Olympics, but it will depend on if he gets a deal done by then, saying “you never know what happens. It's a cutthroat league, and I gotta take care of my family and my friends first. If my contract comes first then I'll be playing for sure, repping for my country. 

“I love Team Canada. I support them 100 percent,” Brooks added. “I Give them all my love and my determination and my help throughout U-16 all the way up to the men's senior team. So I'm happy that we made it and knowing that the next step is to qualify or win the whole thing — We want to win the whole thing and then qualify and go to the Olympics.”