 Brooks with theHouston Rockets in 2008 | |
| Personal information | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1985-01-14)January 14, 1985 (age 41) Seattle, Washington, U.S. |
| Listed height | 6 ft 0 in (1.83 m) |
| Listed weight | 161 lb (73 kg) |
| Career information | |
| High school | Franklin (Seattle, Washington) |
| College | Oregon (2003–2007) |
| NBA draft | 2007: 1st round, 26th overall pick |
| Drafted by | Houston Rockets |
| Playing career | 2007–2019 |
| Position | Point guard |
| Number | 0, 3, 00, 30 |
| Coaching career | 2020–present |
| Career history | |
Playing | |
| 2007–2011 | Houston Rockets |
| 2007 | →Rio Grande Valley Vipers |
| 2011 | Phoenix Suns |
| 2011–2012 | Guangdong Southern Tigers |
| 2012–2013 | Sacramento Kings |
| 2013–2014 | Houston Rockets |
| 2014 | Denver Nuggets |
| 2014–2016 | Chicago Bulls |
| 2016–2017 | Indiana Pacers |
| 2017–2018 | Minnesota Timberwolves |
| 2019 | Illawarra Hawks |
Coaching | |
| 2020–2023 | New York Knicks (two-way liaison) |
| 2021–2023 | →Westchester Knicks (assistant) |
| Career highlights | |
| |
| Career statistics | |
| Points | 6,259 (9.7 ppg) |
| Rebounds | 1,079 (1.7 rpg) |
| Assists | 1,925 (3.0 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com  | |
| Stats atBasketball Reference | |
Medals | |
Aaron Jamal Brooks (born January 14, 1985) is an American professionalbasketball coach and former player. He was selected 26th overall in the2007 NBA draft. Brooks won theNBA Most Improved Player Award for the 2009–10 season.
Brooks, a high-profile recruit out ofFranklin High School in Seattle, "earned just about every honor possible" while leading his team to the Washington 4A State Championship as a senior.[1] As a high school senior he averaged 24.3 points, 7.0 assists, 3.3 rebounds and 2.3 steals per game.[2] In that championship game, Brooks went head-to-head with futureGonzaga Bulldog and two-time NBA championAdam Morrison. Brooks finished with 38 points in the 67–55 win. Morrison finished with 37 in the loss, but was still named Tournament MVP after matching the then four-game scoring title.[1]
Considered a four-star recruit by247Sports.com, Brooks was listed as the No. 4 point guard and the No. 30 player in the nation in 2003.[3]
Brooks played hiscollege career at theUniversity of Oregon in 2007. He was a four-year starter for theDucks, and finished his career with 13.1 points, 3.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists per game. In his first year at Oregon, Brooks took over the starting point guard role previously occupied by guardLuke Ridnour, who went on to play in theNBA. Despite missing 10 games with a broken bone in his wrist, Brooks earnedPac-10 All-Freshman honors. Brooks was named honorable mention all-Pac-10 for his efforts as a sophomore, a season which included a 34-point effort againstUSC. After a disappointing junior year at Oregon culminating in a suspension during a game against Washington, Brooks rebounded to become one of the leading candidates for Pac-10 Player of the Year. He led the Ducks to a number of key victories, including game winners over then #1 rankedUCLA and then #10Arizona inTucson. Brooks scored a team high 31 points and grabbed 8 rebounds in an overtime road win against then top 25 rankedWashington State, helping to hand the Cougars their first home loss of the 2006–07 season. At the half-way mark of Pac-10 conference play, Brooks was averaging 19.1 points and 4.5 assists per game in leading Oregon to a top 10 ranking and a 19–2 overall record. The Ducks went on to finish and tie for third place in the Pac-10 conference, and won the Pac-10 Championship tournament following an impressive three-day run over Arizona,Cal and USC. Oregon advanced to the Midwest Regional Final where they lost to defending championFlorida. Brooks was announced as one of 22 finalists for theJohn R. Wooden Award, which is given to the top college basketball player in the nation. Brooks was one of 10 players named to the Wooden All-American Team, and he was alsoAll-Pac-10 First Team. He won the men's three point shootout on March 29, 2007, to finish off his NCAA career, but lost the "battle of the sexes" toKatie Gearlds ofPurdue University. He graduated from Oregon in 2007 with a degree in political science.
On June 28, 2007, Brooks was taken 26th overall in the first round of the2007 NBA draft by theHouston Rockets. During the 2007–08 season, he spent time with theRio Grande Valley Vipers of theNBA Development League.
On February 19, 2009,Rafer Alston, the Rockets' starting point guard at the time, was traded to theOrlando Magic minutes before the trading deadline, making way for Brooks to become the starter. As a starter, he averaged around 14.0 points and 4.5 assists per game. On April 21, 2009, Brooks scored 11 points in 27 seconds in a first round 107–103 playoff loss to thePortland Trail Blazers, in which Brooks played a huge part in Houston's rally, scoring three 3-pointers and a fast break lay-up. While the Rockets lost that game, they were able to eliminate Portland in six games. Brooks scored a then career-high 34 points in Game 4 of the2009 Western Conference semi-finals as the Rockets, withoutYao Ming, defeated theLos Angeles Lakers to even the series at 2–2.[4] However, the Lakers eventually won the series in 7 games as well as the championship.
On January 13, 2010, Brooks scored a new career high of 43 points in a triple overtime win against theMinnesota Timberwolves.[5] On March 15, 2010, Brooks scored the game winning shot against the Denver Nuggets with 2.9 seconds left in the game. On March 17, 2010, Brooks shot 7–7 from behind the three arc against theMemphis Grizzlies, setting a new franchise record. On April 11, 2010, Brooks became only the sixth player in NBA history to make over 200 3-pointers and over 400 assists in a single season.
On April 23, 2010, he was namedNBA Most Improved Player, averaging 19.6 points, 5.3 assists, and 2.6 rebounds per game.
On November 6, 2010, Brooks suffered a sprained ankle. He returned on December 19, 2010, in a 102–93 win over theSacramento Kings, in which he came off the bench for 15 minutes and recorded 9 points (all 3-pointers). In his first start since return from his injury, on January 10, 2011, he tied his season-high 24 points, in a win over theBoston Celtics.
On February 24, 2011, Brooks was traded to thePhoenix Suns forGoran Dragić and a first-round pick the team got from theOrlando Magic in an earlier trade.
During the2011 NBA lockout, Brooks signed to play for theGuangdong Southern Tigers.[6][7] On January 6, 2012, Brooks scored 40 points while playing 38 minutes off the bench as Guangdong defeated theTianjin Ronggang 110–97. Brooks was 5 points shy of tying the Guangdong points scored record made by former playerDu Feng. On February 16, 2012, Brooks was selected as the replacement starting point guard for the 2012CBA All-Star game.[8] The original starter,J.R. Smith, decided not to play for personal reasons.[9] Brooks was also selected to participate for the CBA's Three-Point Shootout competition. In the three-point shootout, Brooks was one point shy from entering the final round of the competition. In the All-Star game, Brooks led all competitors with 9 assists, but his Northern All-Stars team lost to the Southern All-Stars, 122–112. On March 8, theNBA on TNT did a segment on Brooks' time in China with Guangdong. Brooks led the team in assists for each game leading up to the2012 CBA Finals, where they lost to theStephon Marbury-ledBeijing Ducks.
After an absence from the NBA during the 2011–12 season, the Suns initially extended a qualifying offer to Brooks for the 2012–13 season,[10] but would later withdraw the offer,[11] thus making Brooks an unrestricted free agent. Three teams that expressed interest in him were theDallas Mavericks, theSacramento Kings, and Brooks' former team, theHouston Rockets. In July 2012, Brooks signed with theSacramento Kings.[12][13] He was waived by the Kings on March 1, 2013.[14]
He later signed with the Rockets on March 5, 2013.[15] On June 30, 2013, he was waived by the Rockets,[16] but on July 19, 2013, he rejoined the team, reaching an agreement on a one-year minimum contract.[17]
On February 20, 2014, Brooks was traded to theDenver Nuggets in exchange forJordan Hamilton.[18]
On July 22, 2014, Brooks signed with theChicago Bulls.[19]
On July 14, 2015, Brooks re-signed with the Bulls.[20]
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On July 21, 2016, Brooks signed with theIndiana Pacers.[21]
On September 21, 2017, Brooks signed with theMinnesota Timberwolves.[22]
On June 20, 2019, Brooks signed with theIllawarra Hawks in Australia for the2019–20 NBL season.[23] On October 28, 2019, he was ruled out for the rest of the season after tearing his left Achilles tendon in a game the previous day.[24]
On November 25, 2020, Brooks joined theNew York Knicks as a two-way liaison.[25] His primary role will be coaching Knicks players who are ontwo-way contracts.[26] Brooks is serving under head coachTom Thibodeau, whom he played for at stints in both Chicago and Minnesota.
| GP | Games played | GS | Games started | MPG | Minutes per game |
| FG% | Field goal percentage | 3P% | 3-point field goal percentage | FT% | Free throw percentage |
| RPG | Rebounds per game | APG | Assists per game | SPG | Steals per game |
| BPG | Blocks per game | PPG | Points per game | Bold | Career high |
| * | Led the league |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2007–08 | Houston | 51 | 0 | 11.9 | .413 | .330 | .857 | 1.1 | 1.7 | .3 | .1 | 5.2 |
| 2008–09 | Houston | 80 | 35 | 25.0 | .404 | .366 | .866 | 2.0 | 3.0 | .6 | .1 | 11.2 |
| 2009–10 | Houston | 82* | 82* | 35.6 | .432 | .398 | .822 | 2.6 | 5.3 | .8 | .2 | 19.6 |
| 2010–11 | Houston | 34 | 7 | 23.9 | .346 | .284 | .940 | 1.5 | 3.8 | .6 | .1 | 11.6 |
| 2010–11 | Phoenix | 25 | 5 | 18.9 | .430 | .328 | .807 | 1.1 | 4.2 | .5 | .0 | 9.6 |
| 2012–13 | Sacramento | 46 | 20 | 20.8 | .459 | .378 | .769 | 1.7 | 2.3 | .6 | .2 | 8.0 |
| 2012–13 | Houston | 7 | 0 | 5.4 | .308 | .286 | .000 | .3 | .9 | .1 | .4 | 1.4 |
| 2013–14 | Houston | 43 | 0 | 16.7 | .395 | .409 | .841 | 1.4 | 1.9 | .6 | .1 | 7.0 |
| 2013–14 | Denver | 29 | 12 | 29.0 | .406 | .362 | .902 | 2.7 | 5.2 | .9 | .2 | 11.9 |
| 2014–15 | Chicago | 82 | 21 | 23.0 | .421 | .387 | .833 | 2.0 | 3.2 | .7 | .2 | 11.6 |
| 2015–16 | Chicago | 69 | 0 | 16.1 | .401 | .357 | .766 | 1.5 | 2.6 | .4 | .1 | 7.1 |
| 2016–17 | Indiana | 65 | 0 | 13.8 | .403 | .375 | .800 | 1.1 | 1.9 | .4 | .1 | 5.0 |
| 2017–18 | Minnesota | 32 | 1 | 5.9 | .406 | .355 | .727 | .5 | .6 | .2 | .0 | 2.3 |
| Career | 645 | 183 | 20.8 | .413 | .370 | .837 | 1.7 | 3.0 | .6 | .1 | 9.7 | |
| Year | Team | GP | GS | MPG | FG% | 3P% | FT% | RPG | APG | SPG | BPG | PPG |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2008 | Houston | 6 | 0 | 8.3 | .320 | .000 | .818 | 1.0 | .5 | .0 | .0 | 4.2 |
| 2009 | Houston | 13 | 13 | 34.2 | .453 | .422 | .804 | 2.6 | 3.4 | .4 | .2 | 16.8 |
| 2013 | Houston | 6 | 0 | 11.2 | .382 | .111 | .600 | 1.5 | 1.8 | .2 | .2 | 5.0 |
| 2015 | Chicago | 12 | 0 | 11.0 | .344 | .308 | .571 | 1.5 | .9 | .3 | .1 | 4.5 |
| 2017 | Indiana | 1 | 0 | 7.3 | .667 | .500 | – | 1.0 | 1.0 | .0 | .0 | 5.0 |
| 2018 | Minnesota | 2 | 0 | 1.5 | .667 | .000 | .000 | .0 | .0 | .0 | .0 | 2.0 |
| Career | 40 | 13 | 17.6 | .416 | .330 | .746 | 1.7 | 1.8 | .2 | .1 | 8.4 | |
Brooks grew up in Seattle, Washington.[27]
