Philadelphia 76ers star center Joel Embiid boiled over Saturday night and pushed Philadelphia Inquirer columnist Marcus Hayes after the team's 124-107 home loss to the Memphis Grizzlies.

Embiid was upset by a recent column from Hayes in which he referenced the inspiration the player said he draws from his son and late brother. the least reliable superstar in the history of the game.”

The column so offended readers that Hayes removed those references from the story later that same day.

Saturday's loss dropped the 76ers to 1-4, including 0-3 at home. Embiid did not play for the fifth consecutive time since the start of the season.

On Saturday, Hayes was confronted by Embiid as reporters entered the locker room.

“The next time you bring up my dead brother and my son again, you'll see what I'm going to do to you, and I'm going to have to… live with the consequences,” Embiid told Hayes, punctuating his statement with some profanity .

Hayes apologized, but Embiid wasn't having it. “This isn’t the first time,” Embiid reportedly said.

Things came to a head when Embiid claimed he didn't care what reporters said. “But you do,” Hayes replied. Then Embiid increased his volume and squeezed Hayes on the shoulder.

At that point, a 76ers PR person jumped between them. A second public relations employee moved an interview with guard Tyrese Maxey to the hallway outside the locker room to deny reporters access.

A team security official asked the media not to report the incident, but Embiid refused. “You can do whatever you want. I don’t care.”

The NBA has said it will investigate the incident and decide whether disciplinary action is warranted.

Philadelphia Inquirer reporter Keith Pompey posted on X about the incident. “Oh man, people are going to remember the Sixers season for the wrong reasons. The team just fell to 1-4 and Joel Embiid attacked a reporter in the locker room.”

Embiid showed his growing anger at the media on Friday.

“I broke my face twice. I came back early with the risk of losing my vision,” Embiid told reporters. “If I see people saying, ‘He doesn’t want to play,’ then I’ve done way too much for this city and put myself at risk of people saying that. I do think it's bullshit. … I’ve done far too much for this damn city to be treated like this.”

The 76ers' slow start has resulted in Embiid and newly signed forward Paul George not yet playing. Both were expected to lead the team deep into the playoffs this season.

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