It was announced on Tuesday that the winner of the 2023 NBA Most Valuable Player Award is Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid. The big guy had an amazing statistical season, posting 33.1 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, steals and 1.7 blocks per game while shooting 55% from the field. This marks the first MVP of the Cameroonian native’s impressive career since joining the NBA as the No. 3 player in 2014.
Before we get into what this means for the League and Embiid, let’s first quickly go over how it got here. Embiid didn’t start playing basketball until he was 15 years old and wasn’t discovered until he joined the Basketball Without Borders Camp in 2011. From there he came to the US to play high school basketball at Montverde Academy in Florida. While his high school career demonstrated his raw talent and material gifts, there was a clear need to polish his game.
He would be a unique player at Kansas in 2013-14 playing under head coach Bill Self. He also played alongside the highly regarded Canadian forward Andrew Wiggins, who many believed would be the next LeBron and was nicknamed “Mabel Jordan”. At Kansas, he displayed impressive movement, touch, and skill, with many comparing him to NBA legend Hakeem Olajuwon due to his background and playing style.
As a Jayhawk, he averaged 11.2 points, 8.1 rebounds, 1.4 assists and 2.6 blocks per game in just 23 minutes per contest. A broken foot would drop Embiid to third place in his draft class and cost him his first two seasons in the NBA. However, it made an immediate impact as soon as it stepped on the ground. An All-Star and All-NBA player with an All-Defensive Team selection under his belt. He has dealt with numerous injuries and blunders and has played runner-up to Nikola Jokic for the MVP award in the past two seasons.