Pillow Fight Turns Fierce: Dillon Brooks Leads Mascot Takedown Before Rockets Demolish Bulls
In what started as playful pregame entertainment but quickly turned into a viral moment, Dillon Brooks of the Houston Rockets showed that his notorious intensity doesn’t take breaks—even during mascot interactions.
The incident, which occurred before Sunday’s game at the United Center, saw Brooks and teammate Tari Eason engage in what can only be described as a comedic assault on Chicago’s beloved Benny the Bull.
The scene unfolded when Benny, known for his entertaining pregame antics, invited the Rockets players to participate in what should have been a harmless pillow fight. However, Brooks, staying true to his reputation as the NBA’s leading antagonist, turned the friendly invitation into a full-blown mascot beatdown.
The “attack” played out in dramatic fashion: Brooks first landed a solid pillow shot to Benny’s face before pushing the mascot to the hardwood. Not content with just one hit, the Rockets guard continued his plush assault on the fallen mascot.
Eason, seeing an opportunity for some pregame entertainment, joined the fray and added his own pillow strikes before pretending to stomp on the helpless bull.
The incident quickly spread across social media, with fans and media personalities sharing the footage of what many jokingly called “mascot abuse.”
The theatrical takedown particularly resonated with NBA followers familiar with Brooks’ history of on-court confrontations, including a notable incident last March when both he and DeMar DeRozan were ejected after a mid-court altercation during a Bulls-Rockets match.
But the pregame mascot mayhem proved to be just the opening act of a long night for Chicago. The Rockets followed up their mascot victory with an even more decisive win on the court, crushing the Bulls 143-107. The game was a showcase of Houston’s offensive firepower, with the team shooting an impressive 52.4% from the field.
Fred VanVleet led the scoring parade with 28 points on highly efficient 10-of-16 shooting. Brooks, perhaps energized by his pregame pillow fighting success, contributed a solid 15 points while shooting 7-of-13 from the field. Ironically, Eason, the other participant in the mascot takedown, had a quieter night with just four points off the bench.
The game’s lopsided score (68-52 at halftime, before the Rockets pulled even further ahead) made the pregame antics seem almost prophetic. Houston dominated every aspect of the game from the opening tip, turning what started as a playful mascot encounter into a night the Bulls would rather forget.
If Chicago fans are concerned about the safety of their beloved mascot, they can be reassured that Benny the Bull has weathered a more challenging situation than a pillow fight. The incident adds another chapter to the growing legend of Brooks’ NBA villain persona, though this time with a much lighter touch than his usual on-court confrontations.
After the game, a fan humorously tweeted, “First, pillows demolish Benny, then rockets demolish the Bulls.” Tough night in Chicago.” The incident serves as a reminder that in the NBA, entertainment comes in many forms—sometimes it’s a high-scoring game, and sometimes it’s watching one of the league’s most notorious players engage in a pillow fight with a mascot.
The Bulls will have time to recover from both the mascot attack and the actual game defeat, while Brooks adds another memorable moment to his ever-growing highlight reel of NBA antagonism, albeit this time with a softer landing.