It's been quite the bounce-back year for Mississauga native Dillon Brooks.
After various injuries limited him to seeing action in just 18 games in the 2018-19 season, Brooks is averaging 15.1 points, 3.3 rebounds and 2.1 assists through the first 41 games of this season.
For Brooks – and the Memphis Grizzlies – the magic number appears to be 20.
This season, the soon-to-be 24-year-old has scored 20 or more points 12 times. The Grizzlies record in those games? A perfect 12-0.
In their most recent win over the Houston Rockets, Brooks finished with 24 points (on 8-for-17 shooting), four rebounds and three assists in 31 minutes of action.
size em. drill em. @dillonbrooks24 | #GRZNXTGEN pic.twitter.com/JEgwOAT103
— Memphis Grizzlies (@memgrizz) January 15, 2020
For context, Brooks scored 20 or more points just seven times through the first 100 games of his career. That he's almost doubled that figure midway through his third season signifies continuous growth and improvement, especially considering the setbacks he faced in Year 2.
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With rookie sensation Ja Morant leading the charge, the Grizzlies have been one of this season's biggest surprises. Not many expected them to be in sole possession of the West's eighth seed at the midway point of the season.
The above statistic indicates just how important Brooks is to this team's success – those 12 games account for two-thirds of Memphis' wins this season. They enter Friday's meeting with the Cleveland Cavaliers as the hottest team in the NBA.
The @memgrizz, winners of their last six games, currently have the longest active winning streak in the @NBA.
— Grizzlies PR (@GrizzliesPR) January 17, 2020
Of course, it shouldn't come as much of a surprise that over this stretch Brooks is averaging 20.3 points while knocking down 4.0 triples per game at a blistering 46.2% clip.
It won't be easy, but Memphis has established itself as a legitimate threat to return to the postseason after a two-year absence.
The more 20 point games it can get from Brooks in the second half of the season, the better.
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