The basketball world is all giving their reactions to the All-NBA Team announcements. The three teams were announced on Tuesday and the big debate has been Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid being named to the Second Team rather than the First Team.
Embiid led the league in scoring at 30.6 points per game as he became the first big man to lead the league in scoring since 2000 and he was the first big man to average 30 points in a season since 1982. All it did was have him finish as the runner-up for MVP and land him on the Second Team behind Denver Nuggets big man Nikola Jokic in both cases.
Boston Celtics star Jayson Tatum was named to the All-NBA First Team and he was confused at how Embiid didn’t make the First Team despite his huge season.
Tatum told Joe Vardon of The Athletic:
“I do think it should be positionless,” Tatum said. “Joel Embiid was second in MVP voting and he made second team? It doesn’t really make too much sense.”
This is mostly due to the fact that Embiid and Jokic play the same position. However, the NBA gave the voters leeway as both Embiid and Jokic were given eligibility as both a forward and a center.
The voters did not see it that way and Embiid was relegated to the Second Team. Being named to the Second Team is still a big honor, but considering how dominant he was on the season, the big fella should have received a higher honor.
This post originally appeared on Sixers Wire! Follow us on Facebook!
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