The Philadelphia 76ers vs New York Knicks playoff series is turning out to be a pretty dramatic affair. After losing the first two games, the 76ers finally managed to get themselves on the scoreboard in Game 3 with a hard-fought win. However, it wasn’t an easy task at all as Joel Embiid had to get into a dogfight on the court to eventually get the dub. After the game, the leaked audio of his in-game clash with Mitchell Robinson was leaked, where the 76ers star can be seen getting into a verbal altercation with Knicks’ Donte DiVincenzo.
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In the clip, Embiid can be seen going for a three pointer when Robinson hit his arm trying to defend the shot. According to Embiid, that should’ve been a foul and he was seen arguing with the referees for the same. When no interest was shown by the refs, the 30-year-old took matters in his own hands after a while and ended up grabbing Robinson’s legs, causing him to trip and fall on the floor. Soon chaos took over the court as DiVincenzo approached Embiid with a warning and said, “Don’t do that sh*t.”
Even though Embiid was clearly in the wrong here, he doubled down and continued to trash talk DiVincenzo. He said, “What are you gonna do?” While the two were going at one another, OG Anunoby also joined the heated discussion. Embiid was penalized with just a Flagrant 1 foul for the offense. He stayed on the court after the incident to finish the game with 50 points, eight rebounds, and four assists and helped his team to a 125-114 victory.
Refereeing has been under contention in the postseason matchup between the two teams. In addition, the even nature of the matchup promises close games as the series progresses. Therefore, fans can expect more heated moments on the court in these dogfights.
Josh Hart knew that Joel Embiid wouldn’t get a Flagrant 2 foul
Referee Zach Zarba provided some insight on why Embiid’s foul wasn’t a Flagrant 2 during his conversation with Keith Pompey. He said that in those situations, the entire officiating crew gets together to determine whether the Flagrant 1 foul is rising up to the level of a Flagrant 2. According to Zarba, Embiid’s contact, although unnecessary, didn’t rise to the level of a Flagrant 2 which is why he was allowed to continue.
As for the Knicks team, they knew the trouble that Game 3 was going to bring along. When asked for his thoughts at the post-game interview, Josh Hart said, “We knew what Game 3 was gonna be… Especially with how Game 2 ended. Am I surprised? Not at all.” More importantly, Hart was happy about the fact that his teammate didn’t get injured in the altercation. Robinson was seen leaving the arena in a walking boot.
