"The most dominant player"- Stephen Curry and Damian Lillard back Joel Embiid to win his first MVP award over Nikola Jokic
For the entire year, Joel Embiid has been one of the leaders in the MVP race alongside Giannis Antetokounmpo and Nikola Jokic. Embiid has carried the Philadelphia 76ers all season thanks to his dominant performances.
Despite Joel Embiid's stellar output, Nikola Jokic has been on top of the race for two reasons. One, he was averaging a triple-double for the majority of the season, and second, he led the Denver Nuggets to the 1st seed in the Western Conference. However, not everyone agrees that the "Joker" should win the award.
Prominent NBA stars back up Joel Embiid as this year's MVP
Damian Lillard is one of the most prominent players to have Joel Embiid as his MVP pick this year. Lillard also thinks that Embiid should've won the award two seasons ago over Jokic. The Portland Trail Blazers star said in an interview with the Dan Patrick Show:
"I just think because he's been, to me, the most dominant player and has been carrying his team, you can't continue to give it to a guy who's won it twice in a row, especially when you have a guy like this that's performing at the same level, maybe even higher."
Dame continued:
"And he also didn't get it one of the last two times when he was at that level. I just think that's not how it should work."
Two-time MVP winner Steph Curry recently regarded Embiid as his MVP this season. Curry told Bleacher Report that he would vote for the Philadelphia 76ers' big man as the most valuable player. While he acknowledges that both Giannis and Nikola have been great too, in his eyes, Joel has performed better than the pair.
"I would say Joel [Embiid]," Curry said. "Any person you pick, their body of work could be compared to Jokić or Giannis. But Joel took a leap that I think a lot of people didn't expect because he was dominant already. That leap turned heads and put Philly in a great position. If I had to pick, it would be him."
While Jokic has proven his case for MVP this year, there's no denying that Embiid has been on a different level this year. The Sixers big man is currently averaging 33 points, 10.2 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.7 blocks, and 1 steal per game.