Dillon Brooks admits he wants fewer techs, but it is not that simple

Phoenix Suns guard/forward Dillon "the villain" Brooks has revealed his "villain" goal for the 2026-27 season on the NBAT2 YouTube channel.

>"My villain goal will probably be not to get 17 technical fouls in a season," Brooks said in the video released on Thursday, July 2.

>Brooks indeed had 17 technical fouls in the 2025-26 season, his first in a Suns uniform, triggering a suspension after he received his 16th.

>"We'll see if I can save them for the end," Brooks continued while getting his hair cut. "At least half of them are earned. Some of them are by the same refs. And some of them I don't need to get. Costs my team some wins."

>Brooks' fiery persona is among the reasons the team's culture changed last season. The team allowed the sixth-fewest points per game in the NBA, after they allowed the 22nd-fewest (2024-25 season) and the 13th-fewest (2023-24 season) in the previous two seasons. They also won nine more games (45 total) than they did the season prior, making the playoffs after failing to do so in 2024-25.

>Do not expect Brooks to be completely done committing technical fouls, however. Brooks explained their occasional necessity.

>"It's the energy that we live by, so some of them are called for, to get your point across," Brooks said.

>Brooks' aggressive style of play led to him picking up 57 steals in his 56 games played last season. Brooks even found avenues to be aggressive offensively in the 2025-26 season, averaging career highs of 17.1 field goal attempts per game, 6.6 3-point attempts per game and 3.6 free throw attempts per game.

>He clearly does not believe he should change his on-court personality but still looks for a more balanced approach. Brooks averaged 20.2 points per game last season and 26 per game in the playoffs. If Brooks can get his "point across" without being taken off the court, he can produce even more moving forward.

>This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Dillon Brooks admits he wants fewer techs, but it is not that simple