The NBA handed down a punishment to Dillon Brooks on Sunday afternoon.
Brooks, of course, turned himself into the main character throughout the opening round series between the Memphis Grizzlies and the Los Angeles Lakers, repeatedly going after LeBron James both on (Brooks was ejected for striking James in the groin at one point) and off (via various cartoonishly misguided rants calling James old, among other things) the court.
LeBron addressed Brooks on Saturday with the perhaps the least “sub” subtweet of all time:
https://twitter.com/KingJames/status/1652365949629263872
Brooks, of course, lived out the classic “reaping/sowing” tweet in real life, with the Lakers winning the series while LeBron absolutely clowned him. Brooks faced further scrutiny by ducking out on media availability multiple times throughout the series, which obviously goes against NBA rules.
The league handed down a fine on Sunday, and the amount isn’t exactly a deterrent:
The following was released by the NBA: pic.twitter.com/WqITrOD3ly
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) April 30, 2023
Just $25,000 despite multiple instances of ducking the media feels comically small, to the point that it reads more like the league saw that Brooks was being punished enough. Which makes it even sadder! Like, imagine getting both a somewhat corny LeBron subtweet directed at you and then also a tiny fine. And, sure, the amount is probably mandated by precedent and the CBA, of course. But, also: it’s still funny.
Brooks is about to hit unrestricted free agency, and it will absolutely be fascinating to see just how these antics (and general lack of on-court contributions in the postseason) will impact the market for Brooks’s services. In any case, having the NBA add this sad little coda to the Brooks saga feels impossibly fitting.
About Jay Rigdon
Jay is a columnist at Awful Announcing. He is not a strong swimmer. He is probably talking to a dog in a silly voice at this very moment.