PHILADELPHIA (KYW Newsradio) — He was close, but not close enough.
Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid finished runner-up to Nikola Jokić of the Denver Nuggets in voting for the NBA's Most Valuable Player.
Embiid received just one of the first-place votes in the race for MVP, comprised of a global panel of 100 sportswriters and broadcasters and one fan vote. Jokić finished with 91.
In total, Jokić received 971 of the total points among voters, with Embiid getting 586.
Embiid's 2020-21 campaign included career highs 28.5 points per game, 51.3% field goal shooting, and 85.7% on free throws, along with 10.6 rebounds, 2.8 assists, and 1.4 blocks per contest. He led the Sixers to a 49-23 record, the best in the NBA.
Jokić's Nuggets had a 47-25 record, 3-seed in the Western Conference. His scoring (26.5) and blocks (1.3) was less than Embiid's, but he outproduced the Sixers star in rebounds (10.8), assists (8.3), field goal shooting (56.6%), and free throws (86.6%).
“As a team, we had a good year, and I was a part of it. It’s disappointing because as a player, you work hard for moments like this, but then again, it’s out of my control,” Embiid said.
“If people around me, my teammates, they believe that I should be [MVP], that I am, I guess you can say that’s good enough,” he continued. “I care more about who I’m around.”
But Embiid isn't dwelling on it. He said he’s more focused on winning bigger titles.
“I just got to come out every year and just be ready and do my job,” he said. “I’m focused on the playoffs, focused on winning a championship. Like I’ve been saying all season, we got a good chance, so I’m not worried about those awards and stuff. If and when I’m holding that trophy, anything else won’t matter.”