Eleven years ago, Dillon Brooks tweeted his praise of LeBron James referring to him as 'the champion'.
Fast forward to Thursday and the two were clashing with each other on the court with Brooks calling the Los Angeles Lakers great 'old' after the first-round Western Conference series match between Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles.
Brooks' Grizzlies tied up the series at 1-1, beating LeBron's Lakers 103-93 with Xavier Tillman scoring a career-high 22 points.
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Memphis was off to a horrible start when they learned about an hour before tipoff they wouldn't have their two-time All-Star point guard, with Ja Morant's bruised right hand aching too much to take the court.
The Grizzlies survived though with Game 3 set to be played Sunday 12pm (AEST) in Los Angeles.
https://twitter.com/dillonbrooks24/status/216018457651720192?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwBrooks and James' exchange was one of the major talking points to come from the game with the two going at each other before engaging in a verbal stoush in the third quarter with Memphis leading 66-52.
Post-game, Brooks said he was never interested in backing down to the all-time great.
"Obviously I have some respect. He's a legend. He's LeBron James. But when I'm on that floor, you're just another player to me," he said.
"I don't care who you are. You're just 6-8, 270 pounds, and you're a basketball player."
Quizzed on whether he should be stirring up a player of James' calibre, Brooks was nonchalant.
"I don't care, he's old," he said.
"I poke bears, I don't respect no one until they come and give me 40 (points).
"So I pride myself on what I do in defence, taking on any challenge that's on the board."
https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1648893379659599872?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwThe Grizzlies will be hoping to have Morant back for game three but coach Taylor Jenkins wasn't give too much away.
"Hopefully over the next couple of days, there’s more significant improvement,” Jenkins said.
Morant's teammates made sure Memphis didn't miss him.
The Grizzlies led by as much as 20 and had fans waving their towels chanting “Whoop That Trick” with 30 seconds left with this series guaranteed a return to Memphis for Game 5. The Grizzlies were able to dribble out the final seconds for the win.
Jaren Jackson Jr., the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, scored 18 points for Memphis.
James led the Lakers with 28 points and 12 rebounds, his 103rd career playoff game with 20 points and 10 rebounds. He tied Tim Duncan for fourth-most all-time. Only Shaquille O’Neal, Karl Malone and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stand ahead of him.
-- with AP
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Eleven years ago, Dillon Brooks tweeted his praise of LeBron James referring to him as 'the champion'.
Fast forward to Thursday and the two were clashing with each other on the court with Brooks calling the Los Angeles Lakers great 'old' after the first-round Western Conference series match between Memphis Grizzlies and Los Angeles.
Brooks' Grizzlies tied up the series at 1-1, beating LeBron's Lakers 103-93 with Xavier Tillman scoring a career-high 22 points.
READ MORE: 'Devastating' gun backed for big money code switch
READ MORE: Crushing blow for Cody Simpson's Olympic dream
READ MORE: 'Delusional' Tszyu's petty fib called out by Zerafa
Memphis was off to a horrible start when they learned about an hour before tipoff they wouldn't have their two-time All-Star point guard, with Ja Morant's bruised right hand aching too much to take the court.
The Grizzlies survived though with Game 3 set to be played Sunday 12pm (AEST) in Los Angeles.
https://twitter.com/dillonbrooks24/status/216018457651720192?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwBrooks and James' exchange was one of the major talking points to come from the game with the two going at each other before engaging in a verbal stoush in the third quarter with Memphis leading 66-52.
Post-game, Brooks said he was never interested in backing down to the all-time great.
"Obviously I have some respect. He's a legend. He's LeBron James. But when I'm on that floor, you're just another player to me," he said.
"I don't care who you are. You're just 6-8, 270 pounds, and you're a basketball player."
Quizzed on whether he should be stirring up a player of James' calibre, Brooks was nonchalant.
"I don't care, he's old," he said.
"I poke bears, I don't respect no one until they come and give me 40 (points).
"So I pride myself on what I do in defence, taking on any challenge that's on the board."
https://twitter.com/BleacherReport/status/1648893379659599872?ref_src=twsrc%5EtfwThe Grizzlies will be hoping to have Morant back for game three but coach Taylor Jenkins wasn't give too much away.
"Hopefully over the next couple of days, there’s more significant improvement,” Jenkins said.
Morant's teammates made sure Memphis didn't miss him.
The Grizzlies led by as much as 20 and had fans waving their towels chanting “Whoop That Trick” with 30 seconds left with this series guaranteed a return to Memphis for Game 5. The Grizzlies were able to dribble out the final seconds for the win.
Jaren Jackson Jr., the NBA's Defensive Player of the Year, scored 18 points for Memphis.
James led the Lakers with 28 points and 12 rebounds, his 103rd career playoff game with 20 points and 10 rebounds. He tied Tim Duncan for fourth-most all-time. Only Shaquille O’Neal, Karl Malone and Kareem Abdul-Jabbar stand ahead of him.
-- with AP
For a daily dose of the best of the breaking news and exclusive content from Wide World of Sports, subscribe to our newsletter by clicking here!
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