Dillon Brooks was not long for Game 2 of the Western Conference semifinals between the Grizzlies and the Warriors.
Brooks was ejected less than three minutes into Tuesday night's contest at FedEx Forum following a flagrant 2 foul on Gary Payton II. In an attempt to stop a layup from Payton, who had a clear lane to the basket, Brooks violently hacked the Golden State guard across the head. The 29-year-old awkwardly crashed to the floor beneath the basket and suffered a broken elbow in the process.
Steve Kerr was red-hot after Brooks' harsh foul on Payton, telling the former to "get the (expletive) out of here." The Warriors head coach further chastised Brooks after Memphis' 106-101 win, which evened the best-of-seven series at one game apiece.
"I don't know if it was intentional, but it was dirty," Kerr told reporters, per ESPN. "There is a code. This code that players follow where you never put a guy's season (or) career in jeopardy by taking somebody out in midair and clubbing him across the head, ultimately fracturing Gary's elbow ... He broke the code. Dillon Brooks broke the code."
Time will tell if Brooks receives additional punishment from the NBA. The Warriors and the Grizzlies are set to resume their second-round series Saturday night when they meet for Game 3 at Chase Center.
