Philadelphia’s Embiid fined for ‘lewd gesture’

Joel Embiid, the Philadelphia 76ers’ center, has received a $50, 000 (£38, 000) fine from the NBA for what it called a “lewd gesture” on the court.

When Embiid, 31, scored in Philadelphia’s 109-108 loss to the Boston Celtics on Friday, he was fouled before making a chopping gesture to his groin.

Previously, Embiid has received fines for the gesture.

Embiid appeared to make the suggestion in a post on X, which also contained the NBA’s social media post detailing his sanction.

Since I’m not permitted to do it, he said, “Yall better start punishing the refs for doing the “lewd” and “blocking foul” gesture.”

Embiid, who was born in Cameroon, was not present for Sunday’s 129-105 victory over the Brooklyn Nets as he continues to recover from a knee injury that required surgery earlier this year.