There has been a torrent of discourse about who should win the 2023 NBA MVP award. For the third consecutive season, the honor appears to be coming down to Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid and Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic.
The two best big men in the league are two of the league’s best players. Embiid was the runner-up to Jokic in each of the last two seasons. With Embiid leading the league in scoring, 33.4 points per game, many believe he should win the award this season.
ESPN’s Stephen A. Smith is one of them:
Ladies and gentlemen, I know Vegas is saying something different. I don’t want to hear anything about Jokic being a front-runner for the MVP right now the way Denver has tailed off. Joel Embiid. Joel Embiid! I’m gonna say it one more time, Joel Embiid! I’m sorry, that man has got to be right up there if not No. 1.
"I don't want to hear anything about Jokić being a front-runner for the MVP right now. … [Joel Embiid] has got to be right up there if not number one."
—@stephenasmith pic.twitter.com/J1yND09ope
— First Take (@FirstTake) March 13, 2023
Embiid and the Sixers will take on Jokic and the Nuggets in Denver on March 27. That will be the next opportunity for the two to go at it and make a claim for the award.
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