Jaylen Brown Calls Out Joel Embiid for Flopping, NBA Refs on Video After Celtics Eliminated by 76ers
Less than 24 hours after losing to the Philadelphia 76ers in Game 7 of the first round, Boston Celtics star Jaylen Brown called our Sixers star Joel Embiid for flopping.
"Flopping has ruined our league," Brown said on his Twitch stream. "Joel Embiid is one of the greatest players that has played basketball, but he flops. He knows it too."
Brown also explained that he hurt his back trying to guard Embiid because of the former MVP's physicality. In addition to being frustrated with Embiid, Brown said he felt "targeted" by the officials at times, specifically when using his forearm on defenders, saying he felt there was an "agenda."
"If I had to say there's some referees that need to be investigated… We had three of them in the last three games," he said.
Brown also walked back his previous comments about the Sixers being better without Embiid on the court.
"He came out and he made a difference in this series… He's one of the best bigs in the world," Brown said.
Sunday's stream wasn't the first time Brown called out Embiid for flopping. Immediately after losing Game 7, he tipped his hat to Embiid but also noted his grievances with the way he plays the game.
"Embiid put a lot of pressure on us," Brown told reporters. "We tried a bunch of different things. He's a big body. He also was flopping around. He got some extra calls and stuff like that, and they rewarded him for that. But that's the league we're in."
Before that, Brown suggested that the 76ers were better off without Embiid after reaching the playoffs despite him missing a large part of the season.
"I think, personally, they're maybe a little better without Embiid, I'm not sure... so we'll see if the big fella comes back, but I think they've been doing a good job," Brown said on a livestream on April 19.
Embiid ultimately got the last laugh over Brown, winning the series after previously trailing 3-1.
Embiid, who missed the first three games of the series while recovering from an appendectomy, had his best game of the series on Sunday when he posted 34 points, 12 rebounds and six assists.
Brown had 33 points and nine boards as he looked to make up for the void that Jayson Tatum left when he was ruled out with a knee injury.
Considering how often Boston and Philadelphia meet in the postseason, a rivalry between the two squads has formed in recent years. Brown's comments only fanned the flame.
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