"Leave room for God's wrath": Mitchell Robinson sends cryptic message amid Joel Embiid flagrant foul controversy

NBA: Philadelphia 76ers at New York Knicks
Joel Embiid and Mitchell Robinson figured in an unfortunate incident on Thursday (Vincent Carchietta-USA TODAY Sports)

New York Knicks center Mitchell Robinson shared a Bible verse about not seeking revenge at an interesting moment, following a controversial play by Joel Embiid in Game 3 of their Eastern Conference first-round matchup.

During a play in Game 3, Embiid infamously grabbed Robinson's foot as he fell. Robinson later exited the game. Embiid received a Flagrant 1 foul for the incident but was not ejected.

The Philadelphia 76ers emerged victorious in the game, 125-114. Embiid ended up scoring 50 points on 13-for-19 shooting. He drilled five triples, sunk 19 free throws and grabbed eight rebounds in 40 minutes.

On Sunday, Robinson shared in an Instagram story Romans 12:19 from the Bible, which states:

"Do not take revenge, my dear friends, but leave room for God's wrath, for It is written: 'It is mine to avenge; I will repay,' says the Lord.’’

According to the Knicks, Robinson has been managing an ankle sprain. Following the game, Robinson was seen wearing a walking boot as he exited the Wells Fargo Center.

Robinson was absent from Saturday's practice, as reported by Fred Katz of The Athletic.

Game 4 of the series will be played tomorrow in Philadelphia, with the 76ers trying to level the series at two games apiece.

Joel Embiid calls incident with Mitchell Robinson ‘unfortunate’

Following the game, Joel Embiid said that the play was unintentional and that he was simply trying to protect himself.

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

Zach Zarba, the crew chief referee for Thursday night's game, spoke to a pool reporter after the game regarding the decision to call the foul a Flagrant 1 instead of a Flagrant 2.

"In this instance, the crew was unanimous along with the replay center official in Secaucus that this foul was unnecessary but did not rise to the level of a Flagrant 2," Zarba said.
"He unnecessary contact rose to the level of a Flagrant 1 but we were unanimous that this did not rise to the level of excessive contact, unnecessary and excessive, which would have been a Flagrant 2 ejection. That's why we kept it a Flagrant 1."

After the game, it was disclosed that Joel Embiid had been dealing with Bell's Palsy and had been undergoing treatment for the condition.

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