Joel Embiid’s night against the Pistons ended with more than just a win.
The NBA handed the 76ers center a flagrant foul penalty 1 on Thursday for his actions in Philadelphia’s 112-106 victory over Detroit on Wednesday night, according to ESPN’s Khris Rim. Embiid had already been whistled for a technical foul in the game after shoving the Pistons’ Tolu Smith under the basket.
The play that drew the league’s attention came with Embiid at the 3-point line and Cade Cunningham closing hard on defense. Embiid rose like he might shoot, then sent the ball over to LeBron James instead.
As he left the floor, Embiid extended his leg and kicked Cunningham in the groin. Cunningham doubled over and clutched at his groin in obvious pain.
Embiid then got the ball back and passed Cunningham to finish the possession with a basket.
It was Embiid’s first flagrant 1 foul of the season, and the league’s discipline system carries an automatic one-game suspension once a player reaches six such fouls.
The incident came in a game that still stood out for what Embiid did on the stat sheet. He finished with 26 points and 15 rebounds, a double-double that also marked his 61st career game with at least 25 points and 15 rebounds. ESPN Insights said that’s the second-most such games by a 76ers player over the past 40 seasons, behind only Charles Barkley, who had 67.
Philadelphia also got 30 points and seven rebounds from Jaylen Brown in the win.
The 76ers are now 8-1 and sit atop the Eastern Conference. Their only loss came against the Pistons back in October.
Embiid is averaging 19.6 points, 10 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game this season while shooting 41.3% from the field.
Friday night’s spotlight shifts to LeBron James, who returns home to face the Cleveland Cavaliers, the team he started his career with before coming back for a second stint and helping lead them to a championship.
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