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NBA report states Joel Embiid was actually fouled by Nikola Jokic with .9 of a second left

According to the NBA Officiating Last Two Minute Report, Jokic placed his hand on the opposite side of Embiid’s hip. The Nugget then affected Embiid’s freedom of movement by grasping the Sixer standout jersey.

The NBA Officiating Two Minute Reports rules that Nikola Jokic should have been called for a personal foul for grapping Joel Embiid (21) instead of the Sixers being called for an offensive foul with .9 of second remaining.
The NBA Officiating Two Minute Reports rules that Nikola Jokic should have been called for a personal foul for grapping Joel Embiid (21) instead of the Sixers being called for an offensive foul with .9 of second remaining.Read moreMatthew Stockman / MCT
    by Keith Pompey
    Updated 
    Published 

Joel Embiid was right.

The 76ers center did not commit the game-deciding offensive foul on Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic with .9 of a second remaining in Saturday’s 100-97 Nuggets victory at the Pepsi Center.

According to the NBA Officiating Last Two Minute Report, Jokic placed his hand on the opposite side of Embiid’s hip. The Nugget then affected Embiid’s freedom of movement by grasping the Sixer standout jersey. The report states a personal foul should have been called on Jokic instead of an offensive foul on Embiid.

At the time, the Sixers were trailing 98-97 and Embiid was disqualified for picking up his sixth foul.

"I watched the replay, I didn’t really see any push off,” Embiid said after the game. “If you want to call that foul, especially at that time of the game, I think that’s kind of BS, especially because he was hooking me. But those are the stuff we can’t control.”

Will Barton went on to make a pair of foul shots with .3 of a second left to give the Nuggets their margin of victory.

However, that blown call on Embiid impacted the outcome of the game.

Jokic’s 20-foot jumper with 2.2 seconds left gave Denver a 98-97 lead. The Sixers had a chance to win on the ensuing possession. That’s when Embiid was called for controversial offensive foul while posting up Jokic underneath the basket.

The Sixers center finished the game with 19 points on 6-for-17 shooting to go with 15 rebounds, 2 assists, 2 blocks, and 8 turnovers. It was his 100th double-double since the start of the 2017-18 season. Jokic had 26 points, 10 rebounds, 6 assists, 2 steals, and 2 blocks.