Before the league took a short break to accommodate the NBA Cup, the Los Angeles Lakers faced the Phoenix Suns on Sunday. It was a highly anticipated game, given that the Suns had previously beaten the Lakers without any star players in the lineup.
With Devin Booker returning on Sunday, the Lakers looked forward to avenging that loss. While they ultimately did what they were supposed to do, the victory did not come easily. The game grew heated, especially when LeBron James and Dillon Brooks went at each other. James and Brooks have a long history of altercations, and Sunday was no different.
Dillon Brooks Speaks Up on Heated Incident With LeBron James
In a recent interview, the Suns guard shared his thoughts on what happened between him and James.
“I guess he’s a social media junkie,” Brooks said. “He be all over the socials. … He thinks that people should think a certain way about him, play a certain way. I’m not going to play that way. So he gets in his moods or his modes or whatever it is. I’m all for that. I wish we would have let him shoot that shot, and that s**t would have been an airball.”
For the first time since the game against the Lakers we heard from Dillon Brooks on his altercation with Lebron James along with the late foul call.
“he is a social media junkie… I wish we would have let him shoot that shot and that s*** would have been an airball”@azfamily pic.twitter.com/PqBKemYhQB
— Griffin S. DeMarrais (@GDeMarraisTV) December 17, 2025
When the Lakers played the Suns in Phoenix on Sunday, tensions flared in the Valley. It began when James ran into Brooks in the second quarter. With 3:30 remaining, James collided with the Suns guard, knocking him to the floor.
While the play did not result in a brawl, it set the tone as tensions escalated later in the game.
In the third quarter, with 10:53 remaining, Brooks attempted to attack the paint with James defending him. Luka Dončić then tapped Brooks on the arms to disrupt the shot, sending the ball into the air.
Despite the whistle making the play dead after Dončić’s contact, Brooks reached for the ball and tapped it down to James. James did not appreciate being hit by the ball and began yelling at Brooks.
Referees intervened and held back James to prevent the situation from escalating further.
In the final minutes of the fourth quarter, Brooks was ejected after receiving a second technical foul for bumping James following his 3-point shot in which James made contact with him.
Ultimately, the “King” got the last laugh as the Lakers defeated the Suns, 116-114. Despite the tension, James delivered an efficient performance with 26 points, four assists, three rebounds, two blocks, and two steals.
