Dillon Brooks is a constant antagonist and annoyance to Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James. This made his recent praise of Luka Doncic all the more head-turning.
In a new interview with viral streamer N3on, Brooks brought up Doncic when asked by N3on to name the hardest player to guard in the NBA.
Dillon Brooks admits that Luka Doncic is the hardest NBA player to guard
Brooks pointed to Luka's deceptive athleticism and endless bag of moves.
"He's got that quick first step, and then once he's got you on his back or on his hip, it's like, you're kind of at his mercy," Brooks said. "He has countless (moves)."
Brooks' honesty here was refreshing, not to mention hilarious in light of his ongoing beef with LeBron.
It feels like Luka has received a lot of flak over the past calendar year for his defensive and athletic shortcomings. Each of Doncic's flaws was put under a microscope, and in some cases, overblown at the time of his controversial trade from the Dallas Mavericks.
Some of that criticism has spilled over into this season, as Lakers fans have grown frustrated at times with Luka's inconsistent effort on defense.
The NBA universe doesn't give enough love to Doncic's singular talent on offense, often taking it for granted. That's why it was nice to hear some blatant praise of Luka's offensive skill set coming from a defensive ace like Brooks.
Brooks was able to pinpoint the genius of Doncic's offensive wizardry: speed manipulation. Luka knows how and when to change speeds, thereby evening out the playing field from an athleticism standpoint. By keeping his defender guessing, his first step operates far quicker than it would normally, as alluded to by Brooks.
Another recent NBA point guard who knew how to do this was Steve Nash. Nash wasn't lightning quick, but his manipulation of tempo allowed him to take pretty much anyone off the dribble.
Of course, Doncic is a giant of a guard compared to Nash, which makes Luka an entirely different beast. He's able to leverage his wide base and underrated strength to basically keep defenders in jail once he's made his initial move.
Brooks is one of the most vicious and intelligent on-ball defenders in the sport. There's a reason the Lakers would love to trade for him, even if the Suns aren't going to let that happen.
Luka receiving this compliment from Brooks is as good an indication as any that Doncic is truly the most unguardable player in the NBA.