Embiid’s woes continue, 76ers star livid after ejection

PHILADELPHIA: Philadelphia 76ers’ star Joel Embiid’s struggles continued on Monday night’s game against the San Antonio Spurs, as he was ejected after disputing a foul call.

Down by two in the second quarter, 76ers’ forward Paul George brought the ball down the court, passing the rock off immediately to Embiid when they crossed into the Spur’s half. Embiid, who had scored nine points up to that point, immediately charged into the paint, where Victor Wembanyama had set his feet and established a guarding position.

The former MVP rammed into Wembanyama’s chest and the referee sounded her whistle, calling a charging foul on Embiid. It was the third foul on Embiid, and he was livid, emphatically disputing the call, claiming that he didn’t touch him, according to the commentators.

Embiid would be given a technical due to excessive arguing, only serving to animate him more. Fellow 76er Kyle Lowry would hold Embiid back, but couldn’t save him from receiving a second tech as the seven time all-star continued to voice his discontent.

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Embiid was ejected from the game, but before he left the court he made sure the referee saw and heard his anger, forcing the 76ers’ coaching staff to hold him back and persuade him off the court.

Following the game, the night’s crew chief, Curtis Blair, stated that “[Embiid] was given two unsportsmanlike technical fouls, which by rule is an ejection. Blair elaborated further on the altercation between the female referee who made the call on Embiid, and the 76ers’ star, saying that the contact between the two was “incidental in nature. There was nothing that warranted any further punishment. It was incidental in nature.”

The home crowd booed the ejection as it happened before their eyes, and some fans posted on social media sites berating the referee. One user on reddit said “I don’t think I ever saw a ref try to make the game more about themselves than that game.”

However, other users criticised Embiid, with one reddit user saying “what was he mad about? It was a clear offensive foul. Very clear.” Embiid has been heavily criticised since the season began in late October, due to his pre-season declaration that he would not play back to back games. He later attributed the decision to the 76ers’ organisation load management plans, telling ESPN “I’m a troll.”

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