Dudley: I should’ve got my money’s worth
Jared Dudley didn’t like when Joel Embiid slammed his elbow into Jarrett Allen in Game 2. He especially didn’t like Embiid laughing about it in a press conference.
So when something similar happened again in Saturday’s Game 4 — when Embiid brought his arm down on Allen for a hard foul — Dudley responded by rushing to the scene with a shove.
What ensued was a brief fracas, a referee falling into the crowd, an overreaction by the league with two ejection, and further proof that Dudley is a pro at instigating.
“I would not have (done anything differently),” Dudley said. “Just because of No. 1, me being a veteran on this team of showing these young guys a certain way of how you have to. I probably would’ve gotten my money’s worth a little bit more on that foul.
“That push wasn’t that hard. He didn’t even fall down. If anything, I fell down. But it’s a certain thing for the league to look at that. Like I said, Joel Embiid is second in the league in Flagrant fouls. He just got a Flagrant 1 almost hitting a guy (in Game 2). If (Allen) would’ve sold it a little bit more falling down, that was a crucial elbow — laughing about it, no fine. If anything, I should’ve got him worse.”
With 7:42 remaining in the third quarter and the Nets up six, Embiid sent Allen down to the court with a hard – albeit innocent foul. Dudley ran from halfcourt to push Embiid with his shoulder, and Sixers forward Jimmy Butler responded by shoving Dudley. As more players jumped into the fracas, Dudley and referee Ed Malloy crashed into the baseline crowd.
Then the aftermath: Dudley and Butler were ejected, while Embiid was hit with a Flagrant 1 foul.
“I thought it was just was a good push, like, ‘No, we’re not having it today,’” Dudley said. “I got pushed, which is fine. And then we get up, we go our separate ways. Should’ve been a technical. For them to eject both Jimmy and myself, it was ridiculous. No punches were thrown. No one said anything crazy.”
Malloy told a pool reporter that the ejections were because Dudley and Butler took a “situation that was under control and escalated it to a heightened altercation.”
Dudley, a veteran role player, has been cast as a leading character in this series mainly because he has taken up Brooklyn’s fight — whether with words or a shove — as it copes with a disadvantage in talent.
Before Game 3, Dudley called Simmons an “average” player in the half-court, leading to a feud between the two. Simmons dominated Game 3, but was below average against Dudley in Game 4 while scoring just 15 points in 39 minutes. Dudley reveled in the circumstances, even staring down Simmons after nailing a 3-pointer (Simmons similarly stared down Dudley in Game 3).