Joel Embiid has reclaimed the No. 1 spot on the NBA.com’s MVP ladder, overtaking Denver Nuggets’ superstar and reigning MVP Nikola Jokic. The Philadelphia 76ers got a couple of big wins in recent days, and even without Embiid on the court, they dominated rivals.
Still, the team is better when the Cameroonian big man is on the court. The Sixers keep climbing positions on the Eastern Conference standings. Even without Ben Simmons on the roster, Joel took care of things and carried his squad to compete in a stacked conference.
As every week, Michael C. Wright breaks down the top 5 candidates to take the MVP award, and this one, Embiid has taken over Jokic, while another player on a hot streak has entered the conversation.
Embiid put together four straight games with at least 32 points, before finishing with 21 points in a loss Sunday to the Toronto Raptors. Embiid sat out the following night against Miami due to back soreness, before returning Wednesday to drop another 30-piece against the Lakers that included 10 rebounds, three assists, three blocks and three steals. Embiid leads the NBA in both 30-point games and 30-point outings with 10 rebounds, as Philadelphia sits just a half game behind Milwaukee at third in the East. The Sixers are 26-8 this season when Embiid scores 30 points or more. But they’ve got to be careful with the big man down the stretch because it’s apparent his back issue continues to linger.
Jayson Tatum ranks 4th this week, showing that he’s in great form right now. The Boston Celtics are the hottest team in the league at this moment, which earned him a place among the top 5 candidates to take the award home. Embiid, Jokic, Antetokounmpo, Embiid and Luka Doncic complete the mini-list.
It’s probably long overdue, but let’s welcome Boston Celtics superstar Jayson Tatum to the chat.
Named one of the NBA Players of the Week on two occasions already this month, Tatum scorched the Utah Jazz on Wednesday for 11 of his 26 points in a virtually flawless opening frame, as Boston started the game shooting 15 of 19 from the floor and 7 of 9 from deep to capture its 21st victory in its last 24 outings by way of a 125-97 stomping.
“We could’ve made excuses coming off a long [four-game] road trip (that Boston finished undefeated, winning three of those games by 20 points or more) and had a slow start, but we didn’t want to,” Tatum told NBC Sports Boston while clutching his son, Deuce, in the postgame on-court interview. “We wanted to come out and prove a point.”
Mission accomplished.
The Next Five:
6. Ja Morant, Memphis Grizzlies (Last week’s ranking: No. 4)
7. Devin Booker, Phoenix Suns (Last week’s ranking: No. 9)
8. DeMar DeRozan, Chicago Bulls (Last week’s ranking: T-7)
9. Kevin Durant, Brooklyn Nets (Last week’s ranking: No. 10)
10. Karl-Anthony Towns, Minnesota Timberwolves (Last week’s ranking: unranked)
We are entering the last few weeks of competition in this 2021/22 NBA season, and the race for the MVP award will get hotter. Many folks say only Embiid, Jokic and Giannis can take the prize this campaign, but perhaps a late push by Tatum could give him the votes he needs to become the league’s MVP for the first time in his young career. Meanwhile, the first three will try to strengthen their case for the coveted award.
