NBA MVP Third Place: Joel Embiid
I have no problem with anyone who wants to put Joel Embiid, Giannis, or Jokic as MVP. I think Embiid is a clear third in that argument, but he’s still having a historic season. He’s leading the league in scoring and playing All-Defensive Team defense, which is a formidable combination. He carried a Philadelphia 76ers team missing its second-best player for most of the year to as high as the one-seed in the East – a monumental achievement.
Embiid is an old-school center who would’ve been at home banging in the paint with Patrick Ewing and David Robinson, but he’s evolved the position to include the shot diet of most modern superstars. 48 percent of his shots come from the mid-range, but he cans them at elite rates. He’s creating the blueprint for the traditional big man to still dominate on both ends.
The big man has improved his passing out of double-teams, and he is averaging the highest assist rate of his career by a massive margin.
There are times when he can be befuddled by defensive schemes he’s not expecting. He has had games where he’s looked to draw fouls rather than get buckets. His defensive effort, while still impressive, hasn’t been quite as good as we’ve seen in the past, likely due to the heavy offensive burden he’s carried.
These are nitpicks, but when you have so many historically dominant players, nits are the difference between MVP and third place.
Most importantly, besides a serious bout with COVID, Embiid has stayed healthy virtually all season. Here’s hoping his cursed run of playoff luck can finally end this postseason when Embiid hopes to break through to at least the Eastern Conference Finals. On the heels of this kind of season, anything else has to be considered a disappointment.