Can the Philadelphia 76ers’ star big man make a run at MVP next season?
The last Philadelphia 76ers MVP Award winner came in the 2000-01 season, when Allen Iverson took home the hardware. It’s been 17 years since the 76ers had a winner, and quite a while since they had a true candidate. Enter Joel Embiid.
In an interview earlier this summer, Joel Embiid told TMZ that he has MVP aspirations.
Here are some reasons why the Sixers’ reigning All-Star can make that leap in the 2018-19 campaign.
3. His defense
Joel Embiid’s defense is among the best in the NBA and probably his best trait. As mentioned earlier, Embiid placed second in the 2017-18 Defensive Player of the Year voting behind Rudy Gobert. Although he did not take home the award, Embiid’s defense is certainly a top-tier.
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In terms of basic stats, he ranked fourth in the NBA in blocks per game (1.8) and held the third-best Defensive Rating in the league. Embiid placed 10th in total blocks, with 111, despite missing 19 games. This was good enough to put him on the All-NBA Defensive second team.
In terms of advanced stats, Embiid had the seventh-best block percentage. Not to mention, Embiid had the best opponent Field Goal percentage in the NBA at 42.0 percent last season (with a minimum of 60 games played).
When Draymond Green won the DPOY award in the 2016-17 season, his opponent Field Goal percentage was 42.9 percent. Kawhi Leonard‘s opponent field goal percentage was 42.8 percent when he won the award in the 2015-16 season. Embiid outranks both of them. Also, among NBA starters (minimum 50 games played), Embiid was second behind Rudy Gobert in opponent points per game per 100 possessions.
Not only does Embiid carry his own high-ranking stats, but he is a crucial contributor to team defensive stats as well. The Philadelphia 76ers allowed the least amount of opponent points in the paint per game last season, at 41.6, which is another NBA best. With Embiid off the court, the 76ers allow roughly four more points as opposed to having him on the court.
Overall, Embiid’s ability to protect the paint and lockdown other players is a clear reason for his MVP case. His defense is not only valuable to his game, but to the 76ers as well. Plus, the defense will only improve. In 2018-19, Embiid will again show his strengths in the post, from blocking shots to offsetting post moves, and ultimately helping the 76ers win games.
2. His offense
Joel Embiid is a very well polished offensive player. In only 63 games, he led the 76ers in total points, total rebounds, free-throws made, points per game, and rebounds per game. With this, he also recorded 38 double-doubles. Keep in mind, Joel Embiid only averaged 30.3 minutes per game, which was 69th in the league, behind some sixth men like Eric Gordon and Tyreke Evans. Embiid’s ability to lead the 76ers in scoring and offensive categories in reduced minutes is very impressive.
In the NBA, Embiid ranked 15th with 22.9 points per game. DeMarcus Cousins and LaMarcus Aldridge were the only other centers ranked ahead of Embiid. Aldridge had a small difference, averaging 23.1 points per game opposed to Embiid’s 22.9. Cousins, on the other hand, only played 48 games. But, Cousins did average 25.2 points per game. Embiid is up there in scoring practically toe-to-toe with other centers in the game, and other top players while playing substantially fewer minutes.
Embiid can score in a variety of ways. Although, his post-up moves down low are among the best in the league. He led the NBA in post-up possessions last season. Embiid was second in post-up points per game with 9.1.
Only Aldridge was higher, by a small margin with 9.3. But Embiid was essentially more effective. He held a field goal percentage of 50 percent from the post-up possessions, higher than Anthony Davis, LaMarcus Aldridge, Dwight Howard, Marc Gasol, Nikola Jokic, Al Horford, and Giannis Antetokounmpo. Embiid and Aldridge were the only two players in the NBA to make at least three post-up opportunities per game, while no other player had over two.
Embiid even graces a very solid shooting ability. He shot 31 percent on 3-point attempts, which is not bad for a big man. He shot 43 percent on mid-range shots from 10-16 feet and shot an incredible 48 percent on shots greater than 16 feet from the basket.
Embiid does a great job of drawing fouls too. Opponents draw fouls on Embiid 23.2 percent of the time, which is an NBA best among starters, and 5th best overall (minimum 40 games played). In his post-up opportunities, 20.9 percent of the time it leads to a free throw attempt — yet another NBA best from Joel Embiid (minimum two possessions per game, Embiid had 9.4)
Where Embiid’s offense proves to be even more impactful is his usage rate. Especially, compared to other players in the league, let alone big men. He was third in the NBA, behind Russell Westbrook and James Harden.
Westbrook led the league in usage rate during his MVP campaign, as Harden did last season. It’s uncommon for a big man to be that high, as the next center was LaMarcus Aldridge, who ranked 23rd (minimum 50 games played). Usage rate is a common factor in determining league MVP. It is practically a number of plays ran through a player while they’re on the floor, showing how necessary they are to a team’s offense and more.
With the ability to draw fouls, shoot practically anywhere on the floor, and still dominate in the post, shows how Embiid is one of the best offensive players in the game. Not many players can boast the offensive stats and skill set Embiid can, particularly at his position. Plus, the usage rate shows how valuable Embiid is to the 76ers’ offense. He is heavily involved in a great amount of 76ers possessions — despite not being a primary ball-handler.
3. His value to the Philadelphia 76ers
Undoubtedly, Joel Embiid is one of the most recognizable stars in the NBA. You can argue that he is now the best player in the Eastern Conference with the departure of LeBron James and for certain a top-three player in the East. His value to the 76ers is a key factor in his chances of winning the MVP.
Shown throughout the article, Joel Embiid matters and is the biggest part of the 76ers team. His usage rate is one of the highest in the NBA and is a part of a majority of the possessions for the 76ers.
Not to mention, he leads the 76ers in many offensive categories. On the defensive side of the ball, he is a prime candidate for DPOY, and makes a difference on the floor. The 76ers play better team defense with him on the floor and allowed the fewest paint points per game in the NBA last season.
The wins and losses show up too. The 76ers went 41-22 in games that Embiid played in. Without Embiid, the 76ers struggled, going 9-8. Embiid did miss the final 8 games of the season, however, part of the 76ers season ending 16-game win streak.
So, prior to the final 8 games of the season, the 76ers were 1-8 without their All-Star Center on the court. Even in the 2016-17 season, the team built momentum in late January, with a chance of a possible playoff push, going 7-2 in the last nine games of January. Of course, this is when Embiid was on the court. Once he was deactivated for the rest of the year, playoff hopes were quickly washed away.
Joel Embiid also toted the highest plus-minus among all centers in the NBA.
It seems obvious that Joel Embiid is very valuable to the 76ers, fitting for the league’s Most Valuable Player award. He can really seal the deal depending on how the 76ers fare in the Eastern Conference next season.
The Eastern Conference is pretty much up for grabs. LeBron James left, and the Raptors mixed up big pieces of their roster and management, which could lead to chemistry problems. Of course, the Celtics are still there. But the 76ers finished as the third seed in Embiid’s second year, where he missed 19 games.
In the 2018-19 season, Embiid can definitely win the MVP and boost his chances by playing nearly the whole season. In turn, this would help the 76ers win more games, and ultimately help Embiid’s MVP chances. If Embiid can guide the 76ers to the top-seed, over the favored Celtics, I would consider his case for MVP a lock.