Joel Embiid Finally Crowned NBA's MVP

BOSTON - Back in 2014 Joel Embiid predicted his MVP futility; nine seasons, three career-threatening injuries, six All-Stars, two scoring titles, and a Ben Simmons later, the Sixer superstar’s prophecy was realized. Embiid won the NBA’s Most Valuable Player vote in a landslide decision, beating out Denver’s Nikola Jokic (15 first-place votes) and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokumpo (12 first-place votes) with an innumerable 73 first-place ballots. The decision was announced on TNT’s “NBA on TNT Pregame Live” show, at 7 pm on Tuesday night, just prior to the Knicks Vs Heat second-round tip-off.

This week’s announcement has undoubtedly been a long time coming for Embiid, who led in either second or third-place votes in both 2022 and 202 only narrowly missing the cut. The superstar Center led the league in scoring this year; averaging 33.1 PPG, while also recording 10.4 RPG and 4.2 AST. Embiid was regarded as a one-man show for the majority of 2023, leading his squad to victory single-handedly on more than one occasion. Luka Doncic recorded four 50-point games in 2023, Embiid was close behind with three; leading his team to victory all three times, most notably with a 59-point performance against the Utah Jazz, leading his team to a 105-98 victory.

Coming in second for the league’s top honor was Denver big-man Nikola Jokic. Jokic, who was crowned MVP back-to-back years in 2021 and 2022, came in second to Embiid this season. He would get a taste of his own medicine after debatably pilfering the award from the Philly big man just last season. The Nuggets star also had a season to remember, though not exhibiting the offensive dominance of Embiid, Jokic averaged a triple-double; almost unheard of for a Center. The trend of big men competing for the MVP has become all too common in the past few seasons. Since the shortened 2020 season, the MVP ballots (especially the top-3) have been dominated by 6’10 plus guys who dominate the paint and even the three-point line, scoring nearly at will.

Just as Jokic and Giannis have found their strides in the league by becoming some of the most feared scorers of all time, Embiid - while under the radar has done so as well, but it wasn’t always that way. In 2021 Embiid made some visible changes to his game, instead of diseagerly stutter-stepping down the lane or waiting at the top of the key for an open three-point shot, he started to take charge, run the lane, and be an all-around more aggressive and in-tern dominant player. Embiid’s pure size and stature made it nearly impossible for even the most experienced of defenders to stop him without fouling. And that in-lies the key to Embiid’s dominance. In the past three years, Jojo has ranked amongst the best in the league when it comes to free-throw percentage, which is great in its own right for a big. However, when considering that he drew more fouls than almost any other player in Basketball, his dominance becomes that much more clear to see. Over 30% of Embiid’s points come from the line while Jokic records on 20% of his, at a much lower clip of 4.8 FT per game all be it.

Joel’s unique dominance introduces the world to an entire new world of NBA bigs. While many have brought fans to believe they're headed toward a league dominated by small ball and three-point barrages, Embiid is headlining a new generation of Center that can change the way the game is played headed into one of the most crucial periods in the NBA’s history.