The New York Knicks had the chance to put in the Philadelphia 76ers in a major hole Thursday and Joel Embiid almost helped them out.
In the first quarter of Game 3 of their NBA Playoff series, Embiid garnered a flagrant foul after grabbing Mitchell Robinson’s legs as the Knicks player went up for a layup. The referees decided that it was a flagrant 1 and the Philly big man was allowed to stay in the game. It was one of several questionable plays involving Embiid during the game, including two times when it appeared that he struck a Knicks player in the groin.
However, since he stayed in the game, Embiid ended up scoring 50 points, a career playoff-high, while leading the Sixers to a critical 125-114 win.
The Knicks still lead the best-of-seven series 2-1 but a lot of New Yorkers think that Embiid got away with a lot of dirty plays in the victory.
One of those people is The Michael Kay Show co-host Peter Rosenberg, who thinks that Game 4 of the series needs to open with someone from the Knicks taking a shot at Embiid to set the tone for the rest of the day.
ICYMI on @TMKSESPN:
After what happened in Game 3, @Rosenbergradio says the New York Knicks have to be tougher in Game 4 in Philadelphia. pic.twitter.com/oHObtrPFxj
— 98.7FM ESPN New York (@ESPNNY98_7FM) April 26, 2024
“The New York Knicks cannot be the New York Mets in Game 4,” said Rosenberg. “They need to make a physical statement in Game 4. You have those extra bodies on the bench that [head coach Tom Thibodeau] never plays? Someone needs a nice, good, intentional, accidental slap across Embiid’s face. Needs to happen in Game 4.
“I don’t care if he’s an MVP or not. I’m not saying you go for the guy’s knees and try to end his season, but guys, [if] you don’t get him with a hard Pistons foul, sorta similar to what happened to [Donte] DiVincenzo yesterday, you could argue he got completely punched in the face. So, someone needs to get racked across the face in the first five minutes on Sunday to show them that they’re not gonna roll over against this team.”
Just in case it wasn’t clear where Rosenberg stood on Embiid, he also shared some further sentiments on X.
Embiid is the dirtiest player in the game …
he just happens to be an awesome player
— Peter Rosenberg (@Rosenbergradio) April 26, 2024
We’ll see if anyone takes him up on that advice on Sunday when the Knicks and Sixers meet for pivotal Game 4.
Meanwhile, Embiid admitted after the game that he had been dealing with Bell’s palsy since the Play-In Tournament.