76ers’ Joel Embiid Wins 2023 NBA MVP Award
The wait is finally over.
After months of countless heated debates regarding the NBA’s Most Valuable Player award, the results are in. For the first time, Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has been named the NBA’s MVP.
The Sixers' big man beats out Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic and Milwaukee Bucks big man Giannis Antetokounmpo for the award.
It’s been a long time coming for Embiid, who has had a tough road to get to this point in his career. After picking up basketball later than most pros do, Embiid quickly adapted to the game that was new to him and made a name for himself down in Florida as a high-ceiling prospect from Cameroon.
Following stints at two different high schools, Embiid attended Kansas for college. After a lone season with the Jayhawks, Embiid geared up to enter the 2014 NBA Draft. For quite some time, Embiid was the consensus number-one pick. Many believed he would land on the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Unfortunately, an injury pushed Embiid’s rookie debut back and forced the Cavaliers to move in a different direction. The Sixers took advantage of Embiid sliding down to the third-overall pick.
The road ahead wasn’t easy for Embiid, who battled multiple injuries, which kept him sidelined until the 2016-2017 season. While he finally made his debut, Embiid played in just 31 games before missing the remainder of the season.
Injuries would be a common occurrence for the big man throughout his career, but it never prevented him from being dominant.
Over the past two years, Embiid was in the MVP conversation. In 2020-2021, Embiid wrapped up the season by averaging 29 points, 11 rebounds, and three assists. He was named an MVP finalist for the first time in his career.
Last year, Embiid leveled up his game. Appearing in a career-high of 68 games, Embiid averaged a league-leading 31 points per game while producing 12 rebounds and four assists per game. Once again, Embiid was an MVP finalist.
Both times Embiid was an MVP finalist, he came up short against Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic. For the third-straight season, the two bigs were named MVP finalists alongside Milwaukee Bucks big man Giannis Antetokounmpo.
While Embiid came up short in the previous two seasons, he’ll come out on top in this year’s race after averaging a career-high of 33 points, ten rebounds, and four assists.
With an MVP award added to his resume, Embiid has a handful of accolades to show for as his seventh playing season in the NBA approaches the final stages.
Along with MVP, Embiid is a six-time All-Star, four-time All-NBA Second Team member, three-time All-Defensive Second Team member, All-Rookie First Team member, and a two-time scoring champion.
