When it comes to the Playoffs, the rivalry between the Knicks and the Pacers has remained consistent. After having successfully passed from the first round, both once again find themselves competing in the Eastern Conference SFs. During the last 14 seconds of Game 1, Donte DiVincenzo ended up hitting his rival, Myles Turner, while attempting to pry the ball away from the Pacers. As a result, DiVincenzo got a foul call. This final-minute incident proved advantageous for the NY team, who used it to add to their lead and secure a 121-117 win. Philadelphia 76ers’ Joel Embiid, who was recently eliminated by the Knicks, simply put out a “LOL”. That three-letter word turned out to be enough for people to turn their attention away from what happened on the court and focus it on Embiid.

An individual straight-up called the player a “clown” for speaking out against DiVincenzo. Given Embiid’s reputation of behaving unusually at Madison Square Garden, he is not someone who the Knicks fans hold in high regard.

Other people joined the bandwagon and made their criticism of the 76ers Center known. One individual put out a poll, asking people to vote for who they believe is the ‘Softest Player in the NBA’. The catch is that all four options contain Embiid’s name. Wouldn’t it have been nice if all MCQ questions we faced in the past had options like these?

Since 1998, it has become common to troll players who had been eliminated by asking them to take a trip to the Mexican city of Cancun. In Embiid’s case, the comments section was filled with this suggestion, with some even proceeding to photoshop the player on a beach.

Along with the above jokes, social media users were also quick to remind him that it was the Knicks who beat the Sixers 4-2 in the first round of the playoffs. “Knicks own you, relax,” the fan wrote.

Not everyone in the comments, however, turned out to be critical. Some proceeded to criticize the advantage going to Donte DiVincenzo’s hands, even claiming that his team had allegedly struck a deal with the referees at their home court.

Overall, while there were arguments from both sides, a majority of people made use of their voices to put down Joel Embiid’s opinion. By deeming him a ‘sore loser’, they drew the attention away from discussing whether DiVincenzo really deserved the foul call or not.

Joel Embiid admitted to loving the “f**k Embiid” chants!

While their rivalry may not be as intense as the one shared by the Chicago Bulls and the Detroit Pistons in the 90s, a certain level of competition still exists between the Knicks and the 76ers. Given that Embiid was the highest average scorer for the latter during his limited appearances in the regular season, he was the constant target of Knicks fans. The same was seen during the recent playoffs, as Madison Square Garden filled up with chants of “F**k Embiid” during game time. For the player, however, these words are not something that deeply affects him.

“I love New York,” said Embiid in a triggering statement. “New York is my favorite city in the world. I have a place here for the past five years. If I’ve got to be the punching bag and you hear a lot of ‘F**k Embiid,’ that’s ok. I love it.”

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While he doesn’t mind hearing those derogatory words, it’s a different story once the team returns to Philly. It had become common practice for Knicks supporters to ‘infiltrate’ the Wells Fargo Center stands. Highlighting the issue, the player stated, “It kind of pisses me off, especially because Philly is considered a sports town. They’ve always shown up and I don’t think that should happen. Yeah. It’s not okay.”

The Knicks have taken the first win of the Semifinals this time. However, it is certainly not too late for the Pacers to pick up the pace (pun intended) and ensure a win during the next game at Madison Square Garden.