It looked like the presumptive NBA MVP was going to get ejected on Thursday night.
In the opening minutes of Sixers-Nets Game 3, Joel Embiid fouled Nic Claxton on a made alley-oop as the Sixers' center fell to the ground. Then came the fireworks at Barclays Center.
Claxton looked down at Embiid as he stepped over him following the bucket. Embiid didn't take kindly to that move, responding by kicking the Nets' center in the thigh area.
In the wake of the Draymond Green-Domantas Sabonis incident earlier this week, an ejection for Embiid seemed extremely likely.
But he surprisingly was not tossed from the game, being assessed a Flagrant 1 foul instead. Claxton, meanwhile, was given a technical for his stepover.
During an in-game interview with TNT's Allie LaForce, Sixers head coach Doc Rivers seemed to reference Green's suspension when asked about incident.
Allie LaForce: "There was certainly an element of egging on when it came to Embiid. How did you think your team handled it?"
Doc Rivers: "That's what teams do now and then when you respond you get suspended. So we gotta be very careful."
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) April 21, 2023
Charles Barkley said on TNT's halftime show he thought Embiid's kick warranted an ejection, adding that it was "worse" than Green's stomp.
"I thought he should have been ejected. I thought that was a flagrant 2. I think his was worse than Draymond's, to be honest with you... He tried to kick him in his private parts."
Charles Barkley on Joel Embiid's kick on Nic Claxton. Do you agree? 🤔
— ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) April 21, 2023
There was yet another contentious Embiid-Claxton moment in the fourth quarter, and this one led to an ejection.
Claxton finished over Embiid at the rim and broke out the staredown once again. That landed him his second technical of the contest.
