Dillon Brooks calls out referee for “personal” technical foul as suspension looms

Dillon Brooks‘ The problem with the technical error has reached a new level. The Suns forward picked up his 14th NBA technical during Monday’s game Phoenix Suns‘ win over the Brooklyn Nets. He is now two technicals away from a one-game suspension.

Brooks’ final technical came with the Suns leading the Nets 121-114 with 3:28 left. He had words for official Mitchell Ervin after he was called for a foul while defending Michael Porter Jr.

When asked about the exchange after the game, Brooks called out Ervin, saying the technical feel felt “personal.”

“You’ll have to ask Mitch about that… It seems personal on his part. That’s all I have to say,” he told reporters.

Brooks was suspended in April of last season after picking up his 16th technical. He picked up 31 technical fouls over two seasons with the Houston Rockets.

The 30-year-old has become a key part of the Suns’ resurgence this season, averaging a career-high 20.9 points per game. He scored 27 points while draining six 3-pointers before going on a technical Monday.

Dillon Brooks picks up his 14th NBA technical foul during the win over the Nets

Brooks’ 14 techniquesnot even halfway through the season, they have raised concerns about a looming suspension. The veteran is known for playing with an edge that has made him very successful throughout his nine-year career.

His teammates felt that his reputation made him a target for technical errors.

“I think he’s going to tighten up, but at the same time, I’m here to defend him and say he shouldn’t get them. I sit there and sometimes I listen to the conversations he has with the refs, and I’ve heard a lot worse from a lot more people. We have to look into it. It’s a reputation thing and it has to come out.” Devin Booker said Duane Rankin of the Arizona Republic.

Devin Booker on Dillon Brooks after Suns’ 14th technical win over Nets (16th one-game suspension): “I think he’s going to get tougher, but at the same time, I’m here to defend him and say he shouldn’t get them. I’m sitting there listening to the conversations he has with the refs … pic.twitter.com/Z40kSGkGHKS

— Duane Rankin (@DuaneRankin) January 20, 2026

Suns coach Joran Ott didn’t see the exchange between Brooks and Ervin, but said it was “tough” to see the forward do the technique at that point in the game.

“The hardest thing is that it’s so late in the game,” Ott said. “I’m not sure exactly what was said. I didn’t know exactly what was going on. So it’s tough in that part of the game. We want him on the edge, but not going over. We want him in the game. We know the numbers. He knows the numbers. It affects us. So yeah, we’ll see what happens.”