Of Course the Most HATED Player in the NBA Was an Oregon Duck

I must be getting old because the Miami Heat haven't been the most hated team in the NBA for nearly a decade. A whole era of NBA basketball just came and went.

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I remember for a bit after Lebron returned to Cleveland, the NBA needed a new villain for fans to hate. Me, I'm a Portland Trailblazers fan, so it was easy for me to hate Draymond Green. 1.) He plays for a conference rival that wins a lot and 2.) He's a jackass. Hating on the post-Kobe Lakers wasn't nearly as fruitful. But here's the thing: Draymond is kind of a bum now. He's rarely shown on national TV or radio anymore. His play isn't as good as it used to be and he's been quiet since punching a teammate in the face. Fortunately, the NBA has a new bad boy.

Dillon Brooks of the Memphis Grizzlies is the most hated player in the NBA.

I spend more time watching videos that analyze player profiles and NBA teams than I spend actually watching NBA games these days, so forgive me if I'm a little rusty. Dillon Brooks is the swingman of the new-look Memphis Grizzlies. I remember him being tough on the Blazers in the COVID bubble but it's gotten worse in the two-plus years since then.

The Grizzlies are one of the best teams in the west, led by polarizing point guard Ja Morant. Ja has done some things that are easy to clown on him and give him grief for but he can't hold a candle to his own teammate.

Dillon Brooks will be remembered for his fight with Cleveland guard Donovan Mitchell.

I remember swiping and scrolling through videos on Instagram. I follow a lot of sports accounts and channels, so that's what I was watching. Then I saw the video of Dillon Brooks punching Donovan Mitchell in the groin, prompting a brawl. The one thing that kept popping up in my mind was Malice at the Palace, the main difference being that Brooks didn't take to the stands to fight with the fans.

Brooks was drafted in the second round of the 2017 NBA Draft out of Oregon.

Brooks is a good player, don't get me wrong. But he's a bit of an ass. If he doesn't want to be the villain of the NBA, he needs to tone it down. But something tells me he won't AND the Grizzlies will be successful. This is because God hates me and doesn't want me to enjoy sports.