Postgame 'Old' Comment After Game 2

On April 20, 2023, following Game 2 of the Lakers-Grizzlies first-round playoff series in Los Angeles, Grizzlies wing Dillon Brooks spoke to reporters and issued pointed comments about Lakers star LeBron James. Brooks said, "I don't care -- he's old. You know what I mean? ... But I poke bears. I don't respect no one until they come and give me 40" [2]. Those lines were captured by multiple outlets and replayed across national sports media the following days, elevating the exchange beyond a routine postgame sound bite [2][6]. Context: the Grizzlies had won Game 2 on April 20, 2023, and the series was in its opening rounds when Brooks' remarks drew attention because they targeted a marquee veteran and implied an intentional provocation strategy. Reporters on-site relayed the quotes immediately; ESPN and Yahoo Sports published pieces documenting both Brooks' language and LeBron's succinct media replies in subsequent availability [2][6]. Immediate reactions included media amplification (national outlets ran the quote as a lead), questions to LeBron and Lakers staff about whether Brooks' comments mattered, and discussion among analysts about gamesmanship versus disrespect. LeBron's publicly reported response in the run-up to Game 3 emphasized focus on basketball: media coverage recorded him as saying short, pointed lines (e.g., "I'm not here for the bulls***") when addressing trash talk, framing his approach as prioritizing on-court results over social back-and-forth [6]. People involved by name: Dillon Brooks (speaker) and LeBron James (subject of the comments), with reporting by ESPN and Yahoo Sports capturing the quotes and immediate fallout [2][6].

Brooks' April 20, 2023 remarks served as the clear verbal ignition point for the public beef with LeBron James by directly challenging LeBron's stature and signaling willingness to provoke a generational star; the line "I poke bears" became a recurring sound bite in later coverage [2]. The comment mattered because it framed Brooks as intentionally antagonistic in a high-profile playoff setting and set expectations for more escalatory interactions in subsequent games, including physical confrontations that became defining moments in the series [1][3].

The immediate consequence of Brooks' April 20 remarks was intense media scrutiny and heightened focus in the next matchup. Within three days, an on-court escalation occurred: Brooks was ejected for a Flagrant-2 low blow on LeBron in Game 3 on April 23, 2023, an episode widely covered as linked to the earlier taunts [1][3]. LeBron later posted an Instagram montage on April 29, 2023 captioned, "If you ever see me fighting in the forest with a Grizzly bear, HELP THE BEAR," widely treated as a direct public response to Brooks' comments [4][7]. Brooks continued to defend his competitive approach in later interviews, saying in August 2023, "I feel like I always had him," when reflecting on the series [5].