Joel Embiid had a furious rant in the face of a female referee during an NBA game, and has been slammed for his outburst
Embiid, who plays for the Philadelphia 76ers, was ejected during the first half of Monday night's game against the San Antonio Spurs, per TMZ.
The ejection occurred after he received two technical fouls from referee Jenna Schroeder.
The ejection occurred with 2:59 left in the second quarter after Embiid received his first technical foul for disputing a foul called on Victor Wembanyama.
Moments later, Schroeder issued a second technical, resulting in Embiid’s expulsion from the game.
Replays of the confrontation were inconclusive about whether Embiid made contact with Schroeder as he approached her.
Some angles appeared to show his chin brushing her hand as she signaled the decision.
Following the ejection, a visibly angry Embiid had to be restrained by teammate Kyle Lowry, head coach Nick Nurse, and several assistants.
The altercation drew sharp criticism from NBA broadcaster Stephanie Ready, who commented on the incident during the live broadcast, per the Daily Mail.
“It’s a foul (on Wembanyama), every which way. You can see he is up disputing it, she is trying to discuss it calmly, and he goes off,” Ready said.
“He approaches and steps to her as if he wants to have a physical confrontation, which I have a problem with. He has to be restrained. He is now out of the game. I have a lot to say, as a woman.”
Despite the drama, Embiid returned to the court after the game to join his team’s celebrations, showing no apparent remorse for his behavior.
Jenna Schroeder, a seasoned NBA official with over four years of experience and more than 100 games under her belt, had a challenging night.
Earlier in the second quarter, she ejected Philadelphia’s Andre Drummond for what was initially ruled a foul on Wembanyama.
However, after a video review, the officials rescinded the call and reversed Wembanyama’s technical foul for flopping.
This sequence of decisions highlighted a tense atmosphere on the court even before Embiid’s ejection.
Following the NBA star's outburst, viewers took to social media to slam Embiid's behavior.
"What was Embiid doing? Clearly he was intimidating, that's unacceptable behavior," one person tweeted.
Another X user wrote: "Embiid is really the f***ing worst. Getting in a woman’s face and intimidating her? Over basketball? Get this man outta the league bruh."
This season has been a turbulent one for Embiid, a two-time NBA scoring champion and perennial All-Star.
Plagued by left knee soreness, he has missed numerous games and faced additional setbacks, including a sinus fracture and a suspension following a locker-room altercation with a reporter.
The game was a stark contrast to Embiid’s previous matchup against Spurs center Victor Wembanyama.
On January 22, Embiid set a franchise record by scoring 70 points against the Spurs, outdueling Wembanyama, who tallied 33 points.
On Monday, however, Embiid’s performance was lackluster as he sought to replicate that dominance.
