Philadelphia 76ers: 3 threats to Joel Embiid’s MVP chances

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Tobias Harris, Joel Embiid | Philadelphia 76ers (Photo by Rich Schultz/Getty Images) /

3 threats to Embiid’s MVP chances: Record

Embiid’s availability is also important to this next point. The Philadelphia 76ers need to be a top-four team in the Eastern conference in order for Embiid to stay in the MVP race. If they can’t be a top-four team in the East then he has no chance.

Obviously, if he plays almost all of their games, that alone gives him a shot of achieving that goal. However, he will need help from teammates, especially with the Simmons situation, to stay competitive in the East. Without Simmons or the return from a trade involving him, the Sixers will be short-handed this season.

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The 76ers second best player without Simmons is Tobias Harris who was a borderline All-Star player last season. The team will have to rely on second-year point guard Tyrese Maxey to be the team’s lead playmaker and third leading scorer.

This isn’t the best supporting cast around Embiid without Simmons. With that in mind, if Embiid puts up similar or better numbers to last year and the Sixers are still a top-four team in the East, then Embiid will have a strong case for MVP.