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Dillon Brooks got his revenge against rival LeBron James and the Los Angeles Lakers, dropping a unique stat line in the Phoenix Suns’ win.

Just nine days after bumping into LeBron James and receiving his second technical foul, which ended up deciding the game against the Los Angeles Lakers, Dillon Brooks of the Phoenix Suns dropped a unique stat line in his team’s latest win over his rival James.

Brooks finished the night for the Suns with 25 points and nothing else. No rebounds, no assists, no steals, no blocks, and no turnovers, somewhat reminiscent of the famous Tony Snell statline, except for the fact that he led the game in scoring in the 24-point win over the Lakers.

After the game, Brooks, a player known for doing the ‘dirty work,‘ was asked if he thought his stat line against Los Angeles mirrored that typical style of play.

“Nah, it was pretty,” he said after the final whistle. 

With Phoenix holding a somewhat surprising 16-13 record after their major roster overhaul over the summer, Brooks is averaging a career-high 21.8 points along with 3.1 rebounds, 1.7 assists, and 1.3 steals on 46.4% shooting.

Dillon Brooks Unique Statline In Revenge Game Vs. LeBron

As mentioned, Brooks could be very easily blamed for the Suns’ recent loss to the Lakers on December 14th. He came face-to-face with his foe in James multiple times, and his final shove on the league’s all-time leading scorer allowed James to hit the close-out free throws. Brooks had the final shot in that contest, but only hit the backboard, in what some deemed as a ‘ball don’t lie‘ moment.

But this time, Brooks had the last laugh over the Luka Doncic-less Lakers in what was Austin Reaves’ first game back from injury. Along with leading the game in scoring, he shot 10/15 from the field while going 3/6 from deep, outshining his rival in James, who still finished with a solid 23 points, two rebounds, and six assists in the losing effort. 

But Brooks’ unique statline holds more historical weight than it might seem on the surface. According to Doug Haller of The Athletic, only a few other players have scored that many points in a single game, but put up zeros across the rest of the board. 

“Per Stathead, Brooks is just the sixth NBA player to register 25 points and five zeros since the league began tracking turnovers in the 1977-78 season,” Haller wrote. “The others: Tim Hardaway Jr. (last season), Cuttino Mobley (2007), Michael Redd (2002), Johnny Newman (1999) and Reggie Miller (1999).”

Booker said he was satisfied with Brooks’ performance, but added that a few rebounds wouldn’t have hurt.

“All points? That’s what we want him to do out there. Maybe a few more rebounds,” Booker told reporters after the win.  “He’s put the work in. He wasn’t this good (earlier in his career).”

LeBron was PISSED when Dillon Brooks high fived him after the free throw 😭

The Suns and Lakers play twice more this season.

LeBron And Dillon Brooks Rivalry This Season

To say the rivalry between James and Brooks is equal would be a massive stretch, despite the number of times the latter has taken a victory lap against the 40-year-old. The two have shared trash talk, technical fouls, and bad blood over the past few years, and this season is nothing new. 

Previously, it was the last time the two played just ten days ago. Each got in each other’s faces, and though Brooks was eventually ejected for his second technical foul against James late in the game, that didn’t stop him from taking a shot after the loss. 

“He’s a social media junky,” Brooks said of James. “He gets in his moods or his modes, and I’m all here for that.”

James responded, but with a bit more political answer.

“I just like to compete,” James said. “He’s going to compete. I’m going to compete. We’re going to get up in each other’s face. Try not to go borderline with it. I don’t really take it there.”

In their previous December 1st matchup, Brooks said that James “likes people that bow down. I don’t bow down. So, that either entices him or it aggravates him,” after dropping 33 points in another Suns win. 

LeBron really lives rent-free in Dillon Brooks head 😭😭😭

Their multiple scuffles and postgame comments on each other are nothing new to this season, but it does feel like the first time Brooks has finally had the upper hand, at least on a few occasions. The Phoenix wing has made a career out of getting in opponents’ heads, whether it be an end-of-the-bench player or the most prolific stars in the history of the game, and his rivalry with James is no different.

Eli Gregorski is a sports journalist covering the NBA for Heavy Sports. He has years of sports writing experience covering the NBA, NFL, college football and basketball, international soccer, and Formula One. He graduated from the University of Colorado Boulder, where he was the assistant sports editor for the award-winning CU Independent student publication. More about Eli Gregorski

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