Dillon Brooks is having an offensive breakthrough this season, and it’s shocking even league insiders. Jake Fischer recently expressed his disbelief in Brooks’ transformation as a goal scorer this season. It’s been a great ride for the Suns, as Brooks perfectly complements the primary option in Devin Booker.
Dillon Brooks was perfect for the Suns
Along with his trademark tough defense, Brooks has brought an unexpected scoring punch to Phoenix. He went from essentially a throw-in as part of the Kevin Durant trade to the second most important piece on a playoff team. And he has been able to get his points in the flow of the attack without excessively dominating the ball.
While his shooting from three wasn’t great (35% compared to 40% last season), Brooks makes up for it with his hard work inside the arc. It has made him a perfect sidekick for Booker. Brooks dominates teams with his bully style and becomes a reliable option for the Suns if the play goes down.
He’s having a career year by far when it comes to scoring average. This season he has 21 points per game; his previous career high was 18. At age 30, Brooks appears to have found his perfect role within the offense. He can combine his strength and skills with the experience of almost a decade in the NBA.
Brooks was expected to bring a new level of defense and toughness to the Suns. He has done an excellent job and has endeared himself to both the team and the fan base. But this offensive growth wasn’t something anyone saw coming.
Somehow, Brooks has turned into a deadly three-level scorer. While his three-ball hasn’t been as consistent this season, he’s still a threat to make it fly. And he has become one of the deadliest middle-class maestros; Brooks has the 10th most midrange buckets this season.
Along with Devin Booker’s versatile scoring arsenal, Brooks gives the Suns a unique one-two punch that is difficult to counter. No matter how the defense plays them, these two have moves to make their shots. And Brooks’ ability to create his own shots in tough circumstances also makes it difficult for defenses to burden Booker.
Dillon Brooks was one of the most surprising success stories this season. He has helped the Suns not only with his personality and defense, but also with his new scoring. His performances this season have shown that it is never too late to teach an old dog new tricks. Hopefully he can keep this up and lead the Suns to more wins as they pursue a playoff berth.
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