Ben Simmons has been involved in a heated verbal exchange with Kyle Lowry which threatened to continue off the court in Philadelphia's NBA win over Toronto.
Simmons marked Martin Luther King Jr Day with a victory but he was limited by foul trouble to 12 points and four assists in the 76ers' 117-111 home win.
After a running battle all game, Simmons and Raptors point guard counterpart Kyle Lowry earned technical fouls and were ejected for their role in an alteraction late in the fourth-quarter, with the Australian rookie then appearing to signal to meet his opponent off the court.
Lowry seemingly obliged, but Simmons reportedly said post-game no altercation ensued.
"I just went to the locker room. Nobody was back there," Simmons was quoted by NBC.
"I think they're just trying to test me. I don't know if they're trying to test me or see how I am on the court, but I don't play around.
"I'm not going to take s*** from anybody."
Joel Embiid led with 34 points to go with 11 rebounds and T.J. McConnell added a career-high 18 points for the Sixers.
Embiid hit four free throws in the final 30 seconds to ensure Philadelphia their fifth win from their past six games, which boosted their percentage to .500.
Demar DeRozan scored 24 points and Lowry struggled in his return from a three-game absence because of a bruised tailbone.
"A tough game," Lowry, who had 13 points on 3-of-16 shooting, said.
Elsewhere, Kevin Durant scored 32 points, Stephen Curry added 23 and the Golden State Warriors extended their road winning streak to 13 games with a 118-108 Martin Luther King holiday victory over the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Durant scored 16 in the third quarter for the defending NBA champions, who haven't lost outside Oracle Arena since November 22.
LeBron James scored 32 points and Kevin Love 17 for Cleveland, who had their home winning streak stopped at 13.
Boomers guard Patty Mills scored 13 points in limited minutes for the San Antonio Spurs in their surprise 102-99 defeat to the Atlanta Hawks.
Giannis Antetokounmpo scored 27 points and grabbed a career-high 20 rebounds to lead the Milwaukee Bucks to a second win over the Washington Wizards in 10 days.
It was tight late before Antetokounmpo took over in the 104-95 victory with Eric Bledsoe contributing 23 points for the Bucks and Wizards guard John Wall scoring 27.
In Oklahoma City, Russell Westbrook had 19 points, 16 rebounds and nine assists before also being ejected, and the Oklahoma City Thunder rallied from a 15-point first-half deficit to beat the Sacramento Kings 95-88.
The New York Knicks beat the Brookly Nets 119-104, the Charlotte Hornets pulled away in the fourth quarter of a 118-107 victory over the Detroit Pistons and the Chicago Bulls snapped the Miami Heat's seven-game win streak 119-111.
Also on Monday, Indianapolis beat Utah 109-94 and Los Angeles Clippers beat Houston 113-102.
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