Lamar Stevens calls Dillon Brooks a clown for pushing over cameraman at Miami Heat game

In the second quarter of the Memphis Grizzlies’ game against the Miami Heat on March 15, Dillon Brooks shoved a cameraman for seemingly no reason. Now, he’s catching some flack from around the league for the unnecessary push.

Lamar Stevens of the Cleveland Cavaliers only needed one emoji to express how he feels about Brooks after the incident. Brooks appeared to have stopped his momentum and caught his fall on the announcer’s table before he made contact with the cameraman. Yet, the video clearly shows Brooks extending his arm in a forward shove.

The shove knocked the cameraman over and he had to be helped up by others nearby. Brooks was not issued a technical foul on the play but on March 17, he was issued a $35,000 fine by the NBA. Brooks never issued any type of apology for what happened.

Brooks already found himself in some hot water earlier in the month of March. He was suspended for the Grizzlies’ game against the Los Angeles Clippers on March 5 for receiving his 16th technical foul of the season in a game versus the Denver Nuggets two days prior.

A few days before that, the former University of Oregon basketball star also made some scathing public comments about Draymond Green. Brooks essentially said no one would know who Green was if he weren’t on such great Warriors teams all these years.

Brooks has been no stranger to making waves in the media in recent years, largely for controversial statements but also for controversial actions. In the 2022 NBA Playoffs, Brooks made dangerous contact with Gary Payton II of the Warriors while Payton II was airborne. Payton fractured his elbow and Brooks was ejected due to the incident.

These type of incidents have contributed to Brooks’ apparent “heel turn” in the NBA. He appears to be okay with becoming “Dillon the Villain” as he seems to be embracing the controversy surrounding him. Or at least, he isn’t shying away from it.

The Grizzlies will need Brooks to keep a cool head as they continue to fight for playoff seeding in the NBA’s Western Conference without star Ja Morant. Morant is still serving a lengthy suspension. The Grizzlies currently sit in the No. 3 seed in the West and have 14 games remaining in the regular season.