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Grizzlies' Dillon Brooks on Andre Iguodala: 'I can't wait 'til we find a way to trade him'


The first time Dillon Brooks saw Andre Iguodala this season, it was on ESPN’s “First Take” on Jan. 24, where Iguodala gave his first public comments in months on being away from the Grizzlies.

Ever since the team allowed him not to report to training camp while they work out a trade, he’s been out of sight, out of mind as the Grizzlies made a surprising push into the eighth spot in the Western Conference.

“Andre Iguodala’s a great player. I feel like he’s doing the right thing for his career, but we don’t really care,” Brooks said after the Grizzlies defeated the Pistons 96-82 Monday. “It’s not a distraction at all. I laugh at that type of stuff.”

Then Brooks got even more honest regarding how he felt about Iguodala.

“A guy that's on our team that doesn't want to be on our team. I can’t wait 'til we find a way to trade him so we can play him and show him what really Memphis is about,” Brooks said.

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It was perhaps the harshest public response from anyone affiliated with the Grizzlies, who have kept things amicable in public with Iguodala. He is expected to be traded before Thursday’s NBA trade deadline.

Brooks' comments drew approval from teammates Ja Morant and De'Anthony Melton when they were posted on social media Monday night. Morant and Melton didn't say anything but posted varying emojis supporting Brooks.

David Aldridge of The Athletic tweeted Monday night that Iguodala was prepared to sit out the season if he wasn’t traded to one of his agreed-upon teams by Thursday.

While the younger Grizzlies may have agreed with Brooks' assessment, Jae Crowder offered a more measured response to Iguodala's situation.

"I would like to keep a lot of stuff in house but we respect what he’s done. He’s a Hall of Famer. In my eyes, he’s a Hall of Famer. He’s proven in this league, so as long as he handled it like a professional, I believe he is," Crowder said.

"I would not say that he’s been a distraction at all. Like I said, he hasn’t been here. But we respect what he wants at this time of his career, and you have to respect it.”