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New York Knicks Legend Slams Philadelphia 76ers Star Joel Embiid: ‘Too Big to be Crying’

Originally posted on Hardwood Heroics | By Paolo Songco | Last updated 4/30/24

There has been a lot of talking throughout the first-round series between the New York Knicks and the Philadelphia 76ers. Joel Embiid has had his fair share of the spotlight, and he hasn’t been shy about talking about his injury and how he currently isn’t a hundred percent healthy.

Well, Knicks legend Charles Oakley has had enough of Embiid’s whining.

New York Knicks News: Charles Oakley Calls Out Joel Embiid

Ahead of Tuesday’s Game 5 matchup in Madison Square Garden, former Knicks power forward Charles Oakley decided to take a jab at the Sixers superstar. Oakley played in a much different NBA era, and he isn’t at all pleased by all the complaining from Embiid:

“Everybody says he’s hurt,” Oakley said Tuesday on SiriusXM NBA Radio’s The Starting Lineup show (h/t Stefan Bondy of the New York Post). “If you’re hurt, stay home and watch it on TV like everybody else is doing. I don’t want hear this, ‘I’m giving it my all.’ You’re a seven-footer shooting 3s. I mean, you stand out around the 3-point line what the guards gonna do? So I think that, you know, they cry too much. All these guys in the league cry too much. He’s too big to be crying . I’m sorry I said about two years ago, he could be the next Wilt Chamberlain. I don’t know. He could be the next Dunkin Donut or somebody because he just cry.”

Oakley went as far as taking back his own statement about Embiid potentially being the next Wilt Chamberlain. Clearly, the Sixers talisman has gotten on his nerves.

Jalen Brunson Draws Patrick Ewing Comparison

Talking about all-time great comparisons, Oakley had some pretty lofty praise for Knicks star Jalen Brunson. According to Oakley, Brunson is “doing better things” than what New York icon Patrick Ewing ever did during the Hall of Famer’s Knicks tenure:

“I’m talking about holding guys accountable. Having somebody that’s fun to play with. Being a real leader. And I think that when we played, our best player didn’t lead,” Oakley told The Post before the series. “I didn’t say he’s a better player [than Ewing]. He’s doing better things. Make the game more fun. Make people enjoy the game. Make players want to play want to play with him.”

Right now, Brunson is looking to achieve a monumental feat that Ewing never reached, which is winning an NBA championship. That will start with a win on Tuesday against Philly to book their place in the second round.

This article first appeared on Hardwood Heroics and was syndicated with permission.

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