Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid was ejected after arguing and attacking referees in their game against the San Antonio Spurs on Monday night.
Embiid, late in the second quarter at the Wells Fargo Center, headed straight for Spurs star Victor Wembanyama and collided with him at the free throw line. Wembanyama received the accusation and Embiid was furious.
He jumped up and immediately started yelling at the referee, earning him the first technical foul. That didn’t slow him down at all, and he quickly picked up the second foul and automatic ejection. At one point, several 76ers teammates and coaches had to restrain him near the scorer’s table while he attacked the referee.
Joel Embiid got called for charging, then got called a technical for berating the ref, then got ejected for yelling at the refs and had to be stopped from chasing them. pic.twitter.com/zkFVgNUU3U
— CJ Fogler (@cjzero) December 24, 2024
Embiid finished with nine points and three rebounds in 14 minutes. He shot 2 of 8 from the field.
The game marked the second return for Embiid, who returned from a fractured sinus in their win over the Charlotte Hornets on Friday. The 30-year-old has appeared in just seven games this season and did not debut until mid-November due to a left knee injury and a three-game suspension for shoving a local reporter.
Wembanyama and Andre Drummond also brawled briefly in the second quarter, with Drummond receiving a technical foul after shoving Wembanyama. He was also nearly ejected, but a second technical foul was overturned after a review.
The 76ers took a 48-45 lead at halftime. Wembanyama had nine points and seven blocks at halftime for San Antonio.
This post will be updated with more information soon.