It didn’t take the Detroit Pistons long to find a new rival in the Philadelphia 76ers, as the two top teams in the Eastern Conference have already played two close games that have both gotten heated.
More fuel was added to that fire by Joel Embiid, who was retroactively given a flagrant one for kicking Cade Cunningham in the marbles on what was supposed to be a shot attempt but turned into a pass.
Cunningham played Embiid well on the 3-point line, maybe too well, as Embiid decided to get some space by intentionally kicking out his leg in a very awkward, non-basketball move that should have been given a foul right away. You can watch it for yourself here.
Embiid was able to use the brief opening created by his kick to pull off the rare “kick to the nuts give-and-go" which led to an easy dunk.
There was later pushing and shoving between Embiid and Tolu Smith, with Embiid getting heated and getting a technical foul that could have possibly been his second of the game if the refs had been paying attention.
It definitely wasn’t the dirtiest play I’ve seen, nor even in the top 100, but it will be enough to keep things heated when these two teams meet again.
Pistons vs 76ers could be the new rivalry in the East
I’ve said many times that one of the unfortunate byproducts of all of the player movement is that rivalries in the NBA come and go. It’s not like the olden days when players mostly stuck with the same team, so you had the same guys going against each other for years in the playoffs, which led to some heated battles.
It’s been ages since the Pistons and 76ers were both good in the same season, so there hasn’t been much of a rivalry there, but that’s about to change.
So far this season, the Pistons and 76ers look like the class of the East, and two teams that should be at or near the top by the end of the regular season.
They have a natural rivalry as competitors fighting for the top spot, but the Pistons are also a team that does not forgive or forget, so I expect Embiid’s actions to be remembered by Detroit.
In the end, this is a good thing, as rivalries are what make the NBA fun, and Embiid may have “kicked” (sorry) off another one for the Pistons to circle on their calendar. The two teams won’t meet again until February, and Detroit will be ready.
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