Dillon, Dillon, Dillon. All anyone wanted to talk about during Suns Media Day was Dillon Brooks, one of the Phoenix Suns’ newest acquisitions. And I don’t blame them. He was the man I had been waiting for all morning since Media Day kicked off on Wednesday.
Not the savior many people might think can transform an organization from one of the worst defenses in the league last year into a top-10 unit this year, but you could tell the media and players were already in love with Dillon, even before the games had begun. That’s because this season is about what happens behind the scenes and in the locker room, the energy that will carry into the stands during home games and even road trips for the Suns. Dillon is ready to turn up the heat in Phoenix, and his fire could be the spark that changes the team’s entire identity.
It started with Devin Booker, talking about Dillon calling him as soon as the trade happened.
”He called me immediately the day the trade went down,” Devin Booker told Tom Chambers and Tom Leander. “The guy you hate when he’s not on your team, but you embrace him when he is. I think that whole reputation has taken away from what type of player he is.”
Hearing that Brooks was a target in the Kevin Durant trade can come across as suspicious and possibly false, but let the Suns keep it that way because it can only feed into the narrative that Brooks is wanted and, in my view, is very much needed.
Whether true or not, those kinds of whispers add intrigue, fuel motivation, and give Dillon Brooks an even bigger stage to prove why he belongs in Phoenix.
”We made the Kevin Durant trade, Dillon was a target,” Suns’ owner Mat Ishbia said. “Dillon is exactly what we’re talking about. He’s the kind of guy we want here. Defensive-minded, tough, sticks up for his teammates.”
Work ethic can sometimes just be empty praise, with players talking up one another to keep the spotlight positive. But when everyone, from teammates to the coach, is emphasizing it, you know the young Suns players are genuinely looking for guidance this year. And that’s exactly what they’ll get with Brooks, whose energy and discipline set the tone on and off the court.
It was an all-morning theme: what Brooks will bring to this team. He has already cemented himself as the most polarizing player to wear a Suns uniform this upcoming season.
A player many of us fans once sports hated, Brooks is now someone we’ll cherish and rally behind for the next 82 games and, hopefully, a deep playoff run. Or even a playoff appearance.