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Team Canada enters the 2023 FIBA World Cup with arguably the best one-two defensive wing tandem in the entire tournament.
Oklahoma City Thunder’s Lu Dort and Houston Rockets’ Dillon Brooks share many similarities in their games. Both are elite perimeter defenders who can be inconsistent offensive threats and aren’t afraid to let it fly from deep.
Both players have had similar career arcs thus far. They went from near afterthoughts on their rosters to working their way up to become key starters. Brooks was drafted 45th overall in the second round of the 2017 NBA draft while Dort went undrafted in 2019.
Even though Brooks has Dort beaten in the accolades department, that might not be the case for long. The latter will likely start to get national recognition with the Thunder improving.
It seems like Brooks is a believer, too. He complimented Dort’s defensive makeup as Canada prepares for the international tournament.
“I’ve kind of watched him become a defensive stopper,” Brooks recently said about Dort. “Guys don’t want to deal with that physicality all night — and what’s crazy is that for his size, he’s quick moving laterally, so he can stay in front and give guys hell the whole night by staying in front, making them take tough shots, midrange shots. I admire that and I admire his heart as well.”
Dort and Brooks have already had several battles throughout the years and that likely will continue as both the Thunder and Rockets look to exit their rebuilds. For now, they’ll work together to see if they can bring back hardware for their home country.
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