Charles Oakley On Joel Embiid: 'I Would Have Smacked Him'

Joel Embiid is lucky he never had to play against Charles Oakley. Because the New York Knicks legend would never have put up with his antics.

Embiid was issued a flagrant one during Thursday's Game 3 between the Philadelphia 76ers and Knicks. While Embiid was on the ground, he grabbed and pulled Mitchell Robinson's leg. Robinson left the game, as his injured ankle flared up after the incident.

A scuffle ensued, with players like Donte DiVincenzo and OG Anunoby getting in Embiid's face. The big man responded, "What are you going to do?"

"I probably would have smacked him," Oakley told Newsday's Barbara Barker regarding the exchange. "You can't let him send that kind of message. If he had done something like that [when Oakley played], he wouldn't have gotten away with it. David Robinson, when he played, he knew what he could get away with. They [bullies] pick a fight they think they are going to win."

(Joel Embiid and Charles Oakley. USA TODAY Sports)

The current Knicks weren't thrilled about Embiid's behavior, either.

"It was dirty," DiVincenzo told reporters. "It was dirty."

Josh Hart said the team is lucky that Robinson didn't end up seriously injured on the play.

"I'm all for tough fouls, tough playoff fouls, but that's something that can put a guy out for a significant amount of time," Hart said. "So we're lucky he didn't get seriously hurt during that time."

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The Knicks lead the series 2-1 with Game 4 scheduled for Sunday at 1 p.m. ET. And you can expect that one to be just as chippy.