Guilty of having verbally and physically attacked a journalist, Joel Embiid received a three-match suspension without pay. Still recovering, the Sixers pivot has still not played a single match this season, and on Saturday evening, he clashed with a reporter in the locker room.
Joel Embiid thus took on Marcus Hayes, a journalist from Philadelphia Inquirerauthor of a column where he questioned the Sixers pivot's desire to stay in shape. In a previous article, this same journalist proposed that Sixers refund spectators with every game missed by Joel Embiid…
But what triggered the Cameroonian's anger was when Marcus Hayes mentioned Embiid's son and his deceased little brother. “The next time you talk about my dead brother and my son, you will see what I will do to you and… I will have to face the consequences”Joel Embiid said to him before shoving him.
“We understand that Joël was offended by the personal nature of the original version of the journalist's column, but interactions must remain professional on both sides and must never take a physical turn” explained Joe Dumarsvice-president of the NBA.
This suspension comes days after the NBA fined the franchise $100,000 for their communication about Embiid's health.
