MEMPHIS, Tenn. — Dillon Brooks danced his way into his 18th technical foul of the year during the Memphis Grizzlies 112-108 win over the Dallas Mavericks, Monday.
After a dunk over a Mavericks defender, Brooks waved his fists in the air back and forth in the direction of the Mavericks bench.
The whistle was quick.
When asked about it, Brooks explained the celebration was directed at Mavericks forward Theo Pinson.
"I just want to let him know, he's a cheerleader," Brooks said. "Same class, I grew up watching him play. He was a great player. Now he gets paid to cheerlead."
Brooks will receive a one game technical for his latest antics - meaning he'll likely miss Wednesday's game against the Houston Rockets. NBA rules dictate that after a player's 16th technical foul, every two technicals afterward result in a one game suspension and a $5,000 fine.
Brooks is not worried about missing out on the money.
"It's just paper, you know what I mean?" Brooks said. "I play hard and the media gave me the villain role and I'm just taking it and doing what I need to do with it."
Brooks received an automatic one game suspension after his 16th technical foul in a loss to the Denver Nuggets on March 4th. He received his 17th technical last Friday in a win over the San Antonio Spurs.
The Grizzlies can attempt to get the technical foul rescinded, but in this case the team doesn't seem pressed to try.
"We'll see," said head coach Taylor Jenkins. "But this might be a hard one to get back."