“Virtue signalling”, “Embiid in her personal space” - NBA fans debate Joel Embiid’s ejection causing altercation with official Jenna Schroeder

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid ended up being the biggest talking point from Monday's NBA slate. Midway through a matchup with the San Antonio Spurs, the former MVP was ejected following a heated discussion with referee Jenna Schroeder.

With a few minutes to go in the second quarter, Embiid went to work against Victor Wembanyama. While driving to the basket on the Spurs' center, he was called for a charging foul.

Embiid was displeased with the call and was animated when giving his thoughts to Schroeder. This resulted in him receiving his first technical foul. Things then hit a fever pitch when he was assessed a second technical while walking away.

The Sixers' big man then became irate and began pursuing Schroeder on the other side of the court. He needed to be held back by his teammates before eventually heading back to the locker room.

Following this encounter, fans were split on whether Joel Embiid deserved the ejection. Some argued it was warranted for how he approached Schroeder following the initial call.

On the other hand, there were a good amount of fans who came to Embiid's defense. Some felt the situation got blown out of proportion because the ref he was arguing with was a female.

"If you don’t get tf out of here with the virtue signaling," one fan said.

"It only looks bad because it's a woman, and he's so much bigger. If it was a male, no one would say anything," another fan said.

"She's a ref, she's gonna get yelled at the same way all the others do. It's what she signed up for. Media just loves finding anything to hate on when it comes to Embiid," said one fan.

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NBA pool report reveals why Joel Embiid was ejected in first half vs Spurs

After each game, the crew chief must conduct an interview for the pool report breaking down the key calls of the game. As expected, Joel Embiid's ejection was the primary topic of Curtis Blair's postgame interview.

When asked what led to Embiid being ejected against the Spurs, it was stated that he committed two unsportsmanlike fouls which resulted in his removal.

"He was given two unsportsmanlike technical fouls which by rule is an automatic ejection," Blair said.

Despite Joel Embiid getting ejected towards the end of the first half, the Sixers did not let it derail them. Thanks to a triple-double from Tyrese Maxey, they walked out with a 111-106 victory over San Antonio.

Following this chaotic matchup, the Sixers now have to prepare for a Christmas Day matchup against the Boston Celtics.