Dillon Brooks, famous for his gritty defense and bold personality, is no stranger to the spotlight. After making a name for himself with the Memphis Grizzlies, his career took an interesting turn in the 2023 playoffs. Remember the incident with LeBron James, when he called him “old”?

This added fuel to his reputation, making him one of the most controversial players in the league. Now, as he is ready to write the next chapter of his career in a new city, let’s look into his contract with the Rockets.

What is Dillon Brooks’ contract with the Houston Rockets? A look into his controversial deal

Brooks was traded to the Rockets on July 8, 2023, in a sign-and-trade contract. Now what’s a sign-and-trade agreement? The deal involves a team re-signing one of their free agents and immediately trading them to a different team. It also helps the team financially. It allows the original team to get value for a player who might otherwise leave for nothing, while the acquiring team can circumvent certain salary cap restrictions. So here’s how the contract works:

Player Re-Signs with Original Team: In this case, the player re-signs with their current team. As a free agent, Dillon Brooks opted to re-sign with the Memphis Grizzlies, the team he was already playing for. This allows the team to negotiate and sign the player for a new contract.

Immediate Trade to Another Team: Once the player has been re-signed with the original team, that team immediately trades the player to another team. The trade usually involves other assets, like players, draft picks, or cash considerations, to balance the deal.

Salary Cap Management: This deal allowed the Rockets to acquire Brooks without creating immediate cap space. By re-signing Brooks and trading him, the Rockets avoid salary cap limitations, maintaining flexibility for future moves while managing the financials across all five teams involved in the transaction.

Do you know apart from the Rockets and Grizzlies, this deal involved more than three teams? Yes, the Atlanta Hawks, LA Clippers, and OKC Thunder. Now that you know how he was signed, it is time to know the details of 4 years, $86,000,001 deal, which is in the table below:

However, do you know this was a very controversial deal? Yes, it was.

This deal didn’t do well with the fans as they compared it with Russell Westbrook’s $8 million deal. Fans took X by storm and shared their views, making the contract controversial. One fan said, “Westbrook only getting 8 Mil, while Dillon Brooks & Van Vleet combine for 210 Mil don’t sit right with me.” While another one said, “$80 million for Dillon Brooks is crazy.”

With that said, do you know what happened between the Grizzlies and Brooks?

Was Dillon Brooks waived by the Memphis Grizzlies?

Brooks never wanted to leave the Grizzlies, as once he said, “I don’t wanna lose to Memphis ever in my career…I wanna win every single time we play Memphis, just to let ‘em know that they made a little mistake,” Then what happened?

On his debut game for the Grizzlies, he had 19 points. This achievement set a record as the first Canadian-born player to score the highest number of points in an NBA debut. However, going back to the questions, was he waived or not?

The Memphis Grizzlies reportedly looked to trade Dillon Brooks for two seasons because of a “shot selection issue,” per ESPN’s Tim MacMahon. News emerged after Memphis’ first-round exit to the Los Angeles Lakers that Memphis wouldn’t bring Brooks back “under any circumstances,” per Shams Charania of The Athletic and Stadium. Brooks was reportedly told in exit meetings that it was best for both sides to start fresh. 

As for the shot selection concerns, Brooks did have a rough year in 2022-23, shooting just 39.6 percent from the field and 32.6 percent from three-point range. He made a career-low 30.9 percent of his threes the year before.

The hooper’s time with the Grizzlies concluded, in a way that surprised many. Despite being known for his strong defense, the team had a growing frustration with his shot selection. For two seasons, the team tried to trade him, and after Memphis lost to the Los Angeles Lakers in the first round of the 2023 playoffs, the team made it clear: Brooks would not return.

Was it the playoff exit that sealed his fate? In their exit meetings, the Grizzlies told Brooks it was time for both sides to move on. For the Grizzlies, it was time to look ahead—could they find a better fit for their future? Now that you know his trade, deal, and reason, what do you think of this process? Should it become a more popular way for teams to improve their rosters without risking salary cap violations?