Sixers: Reviewing Joel Embiid’s MVP case with 18 games left

Sixers, Joel Embiid, and the MVP race: The heavy hitters

• 3. Giannis Antetokounmpo, Bucks

As expected, Giannis Antetokounmpo is right back in the MVP mix. He’s the least credited of the top-3 candidates right now, but Giannis’ production and the Bucks’ recent surge in the standings (only a half-game behind Philadelphia in third place) make him a name to really consider. He’s going to finish high in Defensive Player of the Year voting and he’s one of the NBA’s leading scorers (29.2 points, 11.6 rebounds, 6.0 assists, 1.4 blocks).

Giannis has overtaken LeBron James as the NBA’s most physically imposing player. He just plays with non-stop aggression, which is rare even for the truly great players. Giannis doesn’t get caught up in free throw struggles or get psyched out by a few missed jumpers. It doesn’t really matter, because teams can’t stop him from getting to the rim, and he has the matchup advantage 99.9 percent of the time once he gets there.

You could credibly argue for Giannis at No. 1. He’s a real candidate, and voter fatigue is the reason it’s not more frequently marketed as a three-man MVP race.

• 2. Joel Embiid, Sixers

Joel Embiid leads the NBA is scoring and spent the majority of this season with his co-star refusing to play (29.7 points, 11.2 rebounds, 4.3 assists, 1.4 blocks). No player compromises a defense quite like Embiid. He demands a double team, and now, he’s quite accomplished at making the right read and rifling passes to the open shooter or cutter when faced with a second defender. Post-ups are virtually outmoded around the NBA, and yet Embiid leads the league in post-ups by a wide margin and produces with startling efficiency.

While Embiid’s defense is a strong mark in his favor, it’s unfortunately difficult to use it as the deciding factor here. Giannis is outright superior on that side of the ball, and Embiid has needed to transfer much of his effort to the offensive end this season. That’s not to say he’s been a bad defender, but what was once a strong All-Defense case has melted into a general appreciation of Embiid’s defensive talent when he decides to flip the switch.

No one who watches the games can question whether Embiid elevates his teammates. The Sixers are still drastically worse whenever he steps off the court, and no player has matched Embiid’s volume of elite scoring displays (he leads the NBA with 10 games with 40+ points). He is putting up one of the best seasons in recent memory. That said, so is the player behind him at No. 3, and the player ahead of him at No. 1 — it’s that kind of historic season league-wide.

• 1. Nikola Jokic, Nuggets

Nikola Jokic is near the top of the NBA in scoring, rebounding, assists, and steals (25.9 points, 13.8 rebounds, 8.1 assists, 1.4 steals). He is more efficient from the field than Embiid and Giannis. He is, right now, the NBA’s most prolific genius. He makes passes no one else can make. Call it vision, call it the benefit of being a 7-footer, but Jokic can see passing angles entirely unique to him. You watch the games, and he looks like a knuckleball pitcher with the movement on some of his dimes.

Many have credited Embiid for “closing the gap” on Jokic with his passing. That’s fair — Embiid is making the right reads more than ever — but Jokic is the best passer in basketball, and his knack for manipulating defenses entirely with his mind is singular. Jokic does not possess Embiid’s speed and bounce. He must instead rely on skill and precision, using his massive 284-pound frame to bump defenders off balance and find crevices in the opposition’s coverage. He can score from any angle, with one of the NBA’s deepest bags of tricks. Little side-step jumpers, one-legged fades, you name it. Jokic is hard to hold in check one-on-one. He, like Embiid, demands a double team, only then you leave the defense rotating. No one can torture a slow-rotating defense like Jokic.

Jokic has, conversely, closed the gap with Embiid defensively. This has not been Embiid’s best season defensively, and Jokic has emerged as a legitimately competent anchor for Denver. His quick hands and preternatural instincts generally leave him in the right spot, even if he doesn’t have Embiid’s capacity for highlight blocks or perimeter switching. Jokic is not on Embiid’s level defensively, but with both players focusing primarily on the offensive end this season, it’s hard not to give the nod to Jokic on the basis of offensive production.

The final straw here — and this is, again, nitpicking between two elite MVP candidates — is strength of teammates. Embiid played without Ben Simmons, but Jokic played without Jamal Murray and Michael Porter Jr. The Sixers’ depth is much stronger than Denver’s (which is saying something), and now Embiid can share the burden with James Harden for the season’s final 20 games. Jokic will get Murray and Porter back too, but Jokic has had the most efficient NBA season in recent history while playing with Aaron Gordon and a hodgepodge collection of middling guards.