Sixers’ Joel Embiid Named Eastern Conference Player of the Month

On Thursday afternoon, the NBA announced that Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid is the Eastern Conference Player of the Month.

The Sixers' big man has been named the Player of the Month for the second-straight time this season. Back on January 3, Embiid was named the Player of the Month for the performances he put on during the December stretch.

At the time, Embiid led the Sixers to a 9-4 record, which included a season-long eight-game win streak. On a personal note, Embiid averaged 35 points while knocking down 55 percent of his shots from the field and 42 percent of his threes.

In January, Embiid maintained his dominance. Playing in ten of 14 games, he spent an average of 33 minutes on the court. During that time, Embiid put up 35 points per game while coming down with 11 rebounds per matchup and dishing out three assists per game.

The big man knocked down 55 percent of his shots from the field and nailed 42 percent of his three-pointers. With his latest Eastern Conference Player of the Month nod, Embiid collects sixth ever, which broke a tie with Allen Iverson for most Player of the Month honors in Sixers history.

Embiid shares this month's Player of the Month honors with Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokic, who helped the Nuggets achieve a 12-4 record in January. During the stretch, Jokic averaged 24 points, 12 rebounds, and 11 assists per game.

As for nominees, Embiid beat out Miami’s Bam Adebayo, Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo, New York’s Jalen Brunson, Cleveland’s Darius Garland, Brooklyn’s Kyrie Irving, and Boston’s Jayson Tatum.

Justin Grasso covers the Philadelphia 76ers for All76ers, a Sports Illustrated channel. You can follow him for live updates on Twitter: @JGrasso_.