Dillon Brooks excited to work with young Rockets forward Tari Eason

In a wide-ranging interview with Kelly Iko of The Athletic, newly signed forward Dillon Brooks spoke several times about the defensive culture that he wants to bring to the Houston Rockets.

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But Brooks went out of his way, completely unprompted, to single out one specific member of Houston’s young core that he’s excited to work with in the 2023-24 season and beyond.

Here’s how the exchange went:

Iko: This is a Rockets team with a ton of young talent but really struggled defensively over these last two, three seasons. Now, you’ve entered the picture fresh off a season where you earned All-Defense honors. What do you bring to the table?

Brooks: Just a lot of grit. A lot of heart, a lot of knowledge, good defensive game as well. And I’m here to teach, you know what I’m saying? I can’t wait to work with Tari [Eason]. I feel like he can be a great player in this NBA — especially a great defender — and grow his game, his athleticism and everything. But I can’t wait to work with him. And yeah, pretty much. And just, you know, that just that veteran savvy.

Dillon Brooks, unplugged on @TheAthletic

▪️Why he’s ecstatic about Tari Eason

▪️Aligning with Ime Udoka + early conversations with the young core

▪️Bringing “contagious defensive energy”

▪️The VanVleet effect, scheming with Sengun + much more. https://t.co/N4CKgNj2yU

— Kelly Iko (@KellyIko) July 9, 2023

Eason averaged 9.3 points (44.8% FG, 34.3% on 3-pointers), 6.0 rebounds, and 1.2 steals in 21.5 minutes as a rookie last season. He earned All-Rookie Second Team honors and graded out by many advanced models as among the league’s most impactful rookies.

Now 22 years old, the 6-foot-8 forward who was drafted at No. 17 overall in the 2022 first round wants to make a significant leap in his sophomore campaign. Fortunately for Eason and the Rockets, he’ll now have one of the league’s top defenders available for guidance.