Is Dillon Brooks Really A Villain?

I am a firm believer that every sport needs a villain or two. Having a couple athletes who love stirring things up is good for the game, there is no doubt about it. Draymond Green, Tom Wilson, any LIV golfer to ever walk away from the PGA, the Houston Astros, Terrell Owens, any Duke basketball player, etc. What do all of these players have in common? Well, they probably have more haters than fans, but they also embrace the role of being a villain which produces more clicks and more views for them and for the sport they play.

This past year, Dillon Brooks decided he was going to dip his toes into the villain game, and boy did he put his best foot forward. Here is some of his best work:

• Punched Donovan Mitchell in the groin (Watch Here)

• Shoved a cameraman on purpose (Watch Here )

• Hit Gary Payton II while in the air causing him to break his elbow (Watch Here)

• Instigated players like James Harden, Klay Thompson, Steph Curry, and Theo Pinson

• Been in a smack talking battle with the NBA’s highest villain, Draymond Green, all year

• Hit LeBron James in the midsection in Saturday’s playoff game after calling him out, saying he doesn’t respect him.(Watch Here)

These examples above have earned him the nickname “Dillon the Villain” given to him by the media. What does he think of it?

Well he seemed to be embracing it up until this past Saturday. After Saturday's altercation with LeBron early in the third quarter, Brooks was ejected from the game. The reasoning for his ejection according to Brooks? The media portrayed him in a bad light and casted a villain image upon his name. Mind you, on top of all the examples I have already given, he is on record coming at other players, calling them cheerleaders, nobodies, etc.

Also, the disrespect he has fed LeBron James recently, is something only an idiot or a villain wannabe would do. “He’s just like everyone in the league, he’s never run the league,” “I don't care, he’s old.” You simply can’t be saying all that stuff if you don’t want to be considered a villain.

This is all stuff that Brooks has done HIMSELF. Now, I am totally fine with it all, (not a fan of it but like I said before, a villain is good for the game) BUT you have to own up to it if you’re Brooks. Players like Draymond and Pat Bev would never blame the media for their image, especially because they know that they paint their picture by themselves, and they love every bit of it.

Dillon Brooks will never be a top tier villain in the sport of basketball because of what he said after his ejection on Saturday, blaming the media for his villain title. Nobody will ever respect his “villainhood” again, they will only respect him for his play on the court (which he has a lot of work to do before that happens).