Knicks decry Embiid's 'dirty' foul on Robinson

New York Knicks players are taking issue with Joel Embiid's Flagrant 1 foul against center Mitchell Robinson during Thursday's 125-114 loss to the Philadelphia 76ers.

"It was dirty," Donte DiVincenzo said, according to ESPN's Tim Bontemps. "It was dirty."

After falling to the court while trying to draw an offensive foul in the first quarter, Embiid grabbed at Robinson's legs while he was attempting a layup, causing the Knicks center to fall.

Robinson left the contest at halftime with a left ankle sprain. He was originally questionable due to ankle injury management.

"I mean, we're just happy Mitch didn't get a serious injury on that," Josh Hart said. "I'm all for tough fouls, tough playoff fouls, but that's something that can put a guy out for a significant amount of time. So, we're lucky he didn't get seriously hurt during that time."

Embiid said that he had "flashbacks" while he was lying on the court of when Golden State Warriors forward Jonathan Kuminga landed on him in January. That incident resulted in a meniscus injury that sidelined Embiid for two months.

"It was unfortunate. I didn't mean to hurt anybody," Embiid said. "I just ... in those situations, I gotta protect myself, because I've been in way too many situations where I'm always the recipient of the bad end of it."

The Sixers star continued: "They want to bring the physicality. We can be physical too, and we are. So it goes both ways. I get bumped all over the place, and I just keep playing, and I'm not going to take it."

Embiid scored a playoff career-high 50 points Thursday. In addition to his knee ailment, Embiid is also being treated for a mild case of Bell's palsy, a temporary condition that causes "facial muscle weakness or paralysis."

Game 4 of the first-round series is Sunday.