PHOENIX — After a timeout, Phoenix Suns forward Dillon Brooks set up outside the lane. Houston Rockets forward Jabari Smith Jr. stood beside Brooks. As Smith waited for the Suns to inbound the ball, he gave Brooks an elbow. Brooks waited a few seconds. Then he elbowed Smith.
Monday night did not produce Kevin Durant’s anticipated return to the desert, where he spent the bulk of three seasons with the Suns. In his first season with the Rockets, Durant did not make the trip because of personal reasons. But Brooks battling his former team offered a similar entertaining storyline, complete with elbows and trash talk.
Although Houston stifled Phoenix, 114-92, at Mortgage Matchup Center, Brooks made his mark, scoring a team-high 29 points. He also barked at the Houston bench, accused the Rockets of flopping, and perhaps saved his best venom for Rockets coach Ime Udoka.
After Brooks and Smith exchanged elbows, Phoenix forward Isaiah Livers lost the ball. As Smith dribbled in transition, his right arm swung back and struck Brooks in the face. Offensive foul. Smith was incredulous. As Brooks lined up at the foul line, Smith pleaded his case with official Scott Twardoski. “That’s terrible,” Smith said.
Udoka sent big man Steven Adams into the game for Smith. Frustrated, Smith jogged to the Houston bench. As he passed Udoka, he explained what happened. “He grabbed my arm,” Smith said, referring to Brooks. Once again, Brooks had gotten in the head of an opponent. Even one who knows him well.
There are no surprises with Brooks. This is his ninth NBA season. Teams are aware of his antics. So is the league. The Phoenix forward’s six technical fouls lead the league, one coming this month as Brooks sat on the bench in street clothes, out with a core injury.
On Nov. 10, then-New Orleans Pelicans coach Willie Green was asked if he respected Brooks’ methods or if he was annoyed by them. Green smiled.
“Both,” he said. “I respect it, and you know he relishes the opportunities to try and shut his opponent down. I love what he does in games. I love how he brings it. He’s competitive. He takes on the challenge every night. But … it’s a little bit of both for me.”
A couple weeks later, Minnesota Timberwolves coach Chris Finch, who has watched star Anthony Edwards clash with Brooks, was asked the same question. He gave a similar answer.
“There’s a handful of those guys that you don’t like when they’re not on your team,” Finch said. “(Brooks is) having a career year. And he takes the challenge of guarding the best player nearly every night. That alone — it’s like being a cornerback in the NFL, taking on these receivers. You’re putting yourself out there. And if you don’t have the right mindset and play with that edge, you’re leaving yourself extremely vulnerable.”
“What he did for our organization was invaluable,” Rockets coach Ime Udoka, center, says of Brooks, who spent the past two seasons mixing it up with opponents in Houston. (Mark J. Rebilas / Imagn Images)
Along with explosive guard Jalen Green, Brooks was part of the summer blockbuster trade that sent Durant to the Rockets. The Suns also received the 10th pick of the draft, which they used to select Duke center Khaman Maluach. Through the season’s first month, Brooks has brought an edge to a team in need of one.
Before Monday night’s contest, Udoka, who had Brooks for two seasons in Houston, was asked how he dealt with Brooks and his habit of pushing boundaries. “If you know me, you know I don’t mind that at all,” Udoka said.
“What he did for our organization was invaluable,” the Rockets coach continued. “To bring in a veteran, like him and (point guard) Fred (Van Vleet), to change the culture and environment, the competitiveness on a nightly basis. You’ve seen that happen here. I don’t mind at all. We both toe the line I guess at times, but he’s a guy that I love and have a ton of respect for.”
If you watch Steph Curry play basketball, you see joy. If you watch Brooks, you see intensity. He plays with a scowl that never fades. Before Monday’s game, Green, out with a hamstring injury, greeted his former Houston teammates at the scorer’s table. Brooks did not.
With Green out, the Suns need Brooks to be a scoring threat alongside star guard Devin Booker. Entering Monday, he had averaged 21.4 points on 45.4 percent shooting, both career bests. But Brooks started slow against the Rockets, missing 5 of 6.
He warmed up.
Dillon hit ’em with the spin 🌪️🫢 pic.twitter.com/GQJqkxpdSv
— Phoenix Suns (@Suns) November 25, 2025
Phoenix coach Jordan Ott says Brooks is more than a catch-and-shoot threat. In his first Phoenix season, the 6-foot-6 Brooks has adapted to every lineup that Ott has put on the court. Perhaps best of all: He knows when to make the extra pass and when to be aggressive.
Brooks was aggressive in Monday’s second quarter. He hit a 3 and turned to glare at the Rockets bench. He sank a 10-foot fadeaway. He scored off back-to-back drives, turning again to glare at the Rockets. Nine straight Phoenix points.
Brooks had found a groove.
Midway through the fourth quarter, Suns guard Collin Gillespie lost the ball. Jabari Smith Jr., picked it up and attacked the basket. Brooks waited. Contact. Brooks went down. Offensive foul. Brooks lay on the court, face down. After he got up, he walked past Udoka, his former coach, and delivered harsh words.
Teammate Jordan Goodwin and official Tre Maddox led Brooks back to the Phoenix bench while the play was reviewed. This was not their first confrontation. In the first half, Brooks had hip-checked Adams, knocking him to the court. Udoka went onto the court to check on his 7-footer. He said something to Brooks. Brooks responded. Udoka laughed.
After the game, Brooks said Udoka accused him of flopping. Brooks said he disagreed. In fact, he had thought the Rockets had flopped all night, at one point calling Houston center Alperen Şengün a “flopping a–.”
“I’ve never seen so many flops being rewarded on the other side,” Brooks said. “It honestly felt like I was in a FIBA game. Like playing basketball in FIBA, where you just get rewarded for flopping. That killed every single run. Couldn’t be physical, but the Rockets were physical, grabbing and holding. And when we tried to do it, there were calls right away. Got to fix that somehow, someway. They got to get in the lab and watch these things because that’s like every night.”
After the game, the Rockets showed plenty of love for their ex-teammate. “Good seeing you, brother,” Houston big man Steven Adams, right, told him. (Garrett Ellwood / NBAE via Getty Images)
Even without Durant, Houston built a 23-point lead. Brooks watched the final minutes from the bench, standing, wiping his face with a towel. After the final buzzer, the Rockets made their way to Brooks. They embraced him. While Peacock interviewed Houston guard Amen Thompson (28 points), Brooks talked with Smith, Şengün and Van Vleet, who’s out with a knee injury.
Brooks hugged Udoka, who told reporters he had messed with Brooks during the game, just as Brooks had messed with him. He knew his former player would be aggressive and motivated against the Rockets. Brooks had shown as much.
Later, Brooks stopped outside the visitors’ locker room. He hugged Houston staffers and said goodbye to former teammates. The Suns and Rockets meet again Dec. 5 in Houston. The second matchup may even be better.
“Good seeing you, brother,” Adams told Brooks. “I’ll f— you up next time.”
“Good seeing you, too,” Brooks said.
— Sam Amick contributed to this story.