Nets don't like way Embiid laughed while apologizing for elbow
The Brooklyn Nets weren't pleased with the way Joel Embiid handled his apology for his inadvertent elbow to Jarrett Allen during Monday's Game 2 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.
"We didn't really like that. We thought that was kind of disrespectful, especially after the elbow he threw," said guard Caris LeVert on Wednesday, according to ESPN's Ian Begley. "It is what it is. There's no love lost. It's a playoff series. We expect that."
Embiid and teammate Ben Simmons struggled to keep a straight face after the big man said he was sorry for the elbow during the postgame press conference. The All-Star center claimed their giggles were merely the result of his rare act of humility.
Joel Embiid apologized to Nets big man Jarrett Allen for elbowing him as Ben Simmons laughs:
— Def Pen Hoops (@DefPenHoops) April 16, 2019
"I got him pretty good but I'm sorry about it. it wasn't intentional..... I'm not usually humble that's why he's laughing" pic.twitter.com/dxgQ7K86J9
Nets veteran Jared Dudley feels Embiid's reaction stemmed from his "carefree" character, but the 33-year-old still won't let him off the hook.
"I felt a certain type of way for it just because you're laughing and someone could have really gotten hurt," Dudley said. "Now, luckily, Jay did pop up. That's been Embiid's personality, but just because it's your personality doesn't mean it's right. So, for us, you can either get even however you want to do it, but the biggest thing for us to get even is winning Game 3."
Embiid received a flagrant-1 foul for clocking Allen in the face with his left elbow while spinning in his direction.
Philadelphia emerged with a 145-123 victory on the back of a 51-point third quarter to tie its first-round series with Brooklyn at 1-1.
Game 3 goes down at the Barclays Center on Thursday night.