The 76ers entered the season with a careful plan to keep former MVP Joel Embiid healthy for the playoffs. Five games later, Embiid hasn’t played, nor has high-priced addition Paul George, and the playoffs no longer seem like a guarantee with the team sitting at 1-4.

On Saturday night, the season took a dramatic turn for the worse.

Embiid got into an altercation with a columnist in the locker room after the 76ers’ loss to the Grizzlies, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania; Keith Pompey of the Philadelphia Inquirer was the first to report on an incident involving Embiid.

Here are the latest details on Embiid’s locker room skirmish.

FURTHER: Latest schedule for the return of Joel Embiid

What did Joel Embiid do?

Embiid shoved a columnist after the 76ers’ loss to the Grizzlies, Charania reported, adding that the 76ers big man didn’t throw a single punch.

Embiid “took issue with a recent column that referenced his late brother and son,” according to the report.

Joel Embiid of the 76ers got into an altercation with a columnist after tonight’s game in Philadelphia. Embiid took issue with a recent column that referenced his late brother and son, and Embiid shoved the columnist. No punch.

– Shams Charania (@ShamsCharania) November 3, 2024

that columnwritten by the Philadelphia Inquirer’s Marcus Hayes in October, referenced Embiid’s desire to “leave a legacy” for his son and late brother, but took a scathing approach that was widely criticized. “Well, to be great at your job, you first have to show up for work,” Hayes wrote.

Charania’s report did not confirm that Hayes was the individual pushed by Embiid, but he wrote the column that sparked outrage at the time of its publication.

“Never put my dead brother’s name in your mouth,” Embiid told Hayes, according to Kyle Neubeck of PHLY Sports.

“You can say I suck, you can say whatever you want about me as a player. “Never put my dead brother’s name in your mouth.” @KyleNeubeck describes Joel Embiid’s altercation with journalist pic.twitter.com/dIsDDaULZz

– Philip Lewis (@Phil_Lewis_) November 3, 2024

Embiid has missed time with numerous injuries throughout his career and has yet to play this season due to lingering knee issues.

The former MVP rejected forcefully on Friday about the idea that he is not committed to playing and called out Hayes by name, telling reporters: “That guy, he’s not here. Marcus, whatever his name is. I’ve done too much for this damn city to be treated like this.”

Embiid evidently had a chance to tell Hayes how he felt after Saturday’s game, and it all escalated into a physical altercation.