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Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid has been named the 2022-23 NBA MVP award, ending Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic’s run of MVP honors. Embiid had slowly overtaken Jokic in the last stretch of the season behind a slew of strong performances and now finally gets his individual honor.
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid has been voted the 2022-2023 NBA Most Valuable Player. Embiid breaks through as the winner after consecutive years as runner-up.
— Adrian Wojnarowski (@wojespn) May 2, 2023
After back-to-back seasons finishing behind Jokic in this category, Embiid gets his due with 33.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game. He only played 66 games, which is going to be one of the lowest number of games played for a MVP winner. Under the new CBA, Embiid would still qualify for the award with the 65-game minimum threshold. Here’s how the voting played out for this award.
Joel Embiid is the first player to win the Kia NBA MVP Award with the 76ers since Allen Iverson in the 2000-01 season.
— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 2, 2023
Complete voting results ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/kko3o8tmxi
Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo were both finalists this year but neither were really in contention with Embiid. They were both fighting each other for second place. We’ll see if Embiid can get back on the court in the playoffs as he’s dealing with a knee injury right now. Jokic has led the Nuggets to a 2-0 lead over the Suns, while Antetokounmpo was bounced in the first round.