Tears as Joel Embiid wins NBA MVP fulfilling wild theory

Joel Embiid has been left in tears after being announced the best player in basketball with some odd MVP voting details emerging.

Big Joe. Photo by Mitchell Leff/Getty Images.

Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid was named the NBA’s Most Valuable Player on Wednesday, comfortably winning a ballot ahead of the Denver Nuggets’ two-time award winner Nikola Jokic.

Embiid, who finished runner-up behind Jokic the past two seasons, earned the accolade after a dazzling regular season campaign that saw him average 33.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists in 66 games.

Embiid beat out fellow MVP finalists Jokic and Milwaukee’s Giannis Antetokounmpo in a preferential ballot. Results revealed Tuesday showed Embiid garnered 73 first place votes, with Jokic 15 and Antetokounmpo 12.

Who will win it all? Watch the NBA Playoffs and every game of the NBA Finals LIVE on ESPN on Kayo Sports. New to Kayo? Start your free trial now >

“I don’t know really where to start, it’s been a long time coming,” a delighted Embiid told the TNT network on Tuesday after his award.

“A lot of hard work, I’ve been through a lot. And I’m not just talking about basketball, I’m talking about life, my story, how I got here and what it took for me to be here.

“It feels good. I don’t know what to say. Amazing.”

Joel Embiid was overcome with emotion after finding out he was named the 2022/23 NBA MVP. Picture: Instagram

The towering 29-year-old Cameroonian power forward helped the Sixers finish third in the Eastern Conference, but has sat out Philadelphia’s last two playoff games after suffering a knee injury in the game three first round defeat of Brooklyn last week.

Tuesday’s MVP honour cements Embiid’s status as one of the elite players in the NBA.

The gong fulfills the prediction he made nine year ago when he posted about one day being on top of the MVP Rankings.

SPOKE IT INTO EXISTENCE https://t.co/XW4QKuuLqH

— Joel “Troel” Embiid (@JoelEmbiid) May 3, 2023

Commentators noticed there were some odd details when the voting was announced with one voter not including Jokic in the top five.

Joel Embiid is the first player to win the Kia NBA MVP Award with the 76ers since Allen Iverson in the 2000-01 season.

Complete voting results ⬇️ pic.twitter.com/kko3o8tmxi

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) May 2, 2023

Embiid’s journey began when he was discovered at a basketball camp run by Cameroonian compatriot and former NBA player Luc Mbah a Moute.

After playing a single season of US college basketball, Embiid was chosen by Philadelphia with the third overall pick in the 2014 NBA Draft.

A foot injury meant he missed the entirety of the 2014-2015 season, and further surgery in 2015 ruled him out of the 2015-2016 campaign.

He finally made his regular season debut for the Sixers in October 2016, notching 20 points, seven rebounds and two blocks in a defeat to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

While Embiid’s talent was apparent from the outset of his NBA career, it is under Philadelphia coach Doc Rivers, who took over the Sixers in 2020, that he has flourished.

Rivers has built his team and game plan around the 7ft (2.13), 280-pound (127-kilo) big man, and was also instrumental in Embiid’s improved fitness.

Embiid hired a personal chef and works with a nutritionist after being urged to stay in peak physical condition by Rivers.

“He told me that I needed to be a leader,” Embiid said of Rivers’ advice in a 2021 ESPN interview.

“If I came back in shape, it also meant to my teammates, ‘It’s time to go. Joel is ready, he came back, he’s in great shape, that means you guys have no excuse to not be in shape.’ “So that’s what I did. I took it to heart.” Embiid has repaid Rivers’ faith this season with a series of superb performances during the Sixers journey to the playoffs.

His average of 33.1 points helped him win the NBA’s scoring title for a second straight year, and his performances have included three 50-point games this season.

Last month he became only the second player in NBA history after the legendary Wilt Chamberlain to record 50 points, 10 rebounds, five assists and 80 per cent shooting in a game as he inspired Philadelphia to a 103-101 win over the Boston Celtics.