NBA MVP Race: Nikola Jokic Replaces Joel Embiid After Injury

Before going down with a knee injury, Joel Embiid was having a historic season, dominating the league on both ends of the floor. As the season progressed, the Philadelphia 76ers center continued to improve, putting together another stellar MVP campaign and defending his title.

Unfortunately, as time went on, Embiid’s health took a hit. In late December, the Sixers’ big man started experiencing swelling in the knee. He missed a four-game stretch before the new year. After returning for two games in early January, Embiid had another three-game hiatus as inflammation in the knee continued to affect him.

It seemed Embiid’s problems were going away, as he returned on January 15 for a six-game stretch. While averaging 34 minutes on the floor, Embiid produced 42 points per game, along with ten rebounds and five assists. Then, the swelling came back on January 27.

After another two games out, Embiid attempted to give the Sixers a boost on the road against the Golden State Warriors. He struggled during his 29-minute shift and landed in an unfortunate situation when a player landed on his knee. Embiid ended up suffering a separate meniscus injury, which required a surgical procedure to correct it.

Embiid already had 12 absences this season going into the first Golden State game a few weeks back. His status as a valid MVP candidate with the new rules in place was already in jeopardy. After missing the Sixers’ previous seven games, he’s officially faded from MVP contention, clearing the way for his common MVP competitor, Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets.

On Tuesday, ESPN put together its straw poll, acquiring opinions from many league insiders to gauge the state of the MVP race heading into the All-Star break. 

Here’s what the report had to say about Embiid:

“Embiid, the first star to become ineligible for end-of-season awards under the NBA's new 65-game rule, underwent a procedure on his left knee on Feb. 6 and will be reevaluated in a few weeks. (Embiid officially became ineligible when Philadelphia's win in Washington Saturday night became his 18th missed game of the season.)

"As a result, Embiid did not receive any votes in the second round of ESPN's NBA MVP straw poll, which was conducted from Friday night through Sunday night. And with Embiid off the board, a familiar face has put himself in pole position: Denver Nuggets center and two-time MVP Nikola Jokic.”

For the last few seasons, the MVP race has come down to the wire, with the two bigs headlining the competition. Three years back, Jokic took home his first MVP award, beating out Embiid, who earned his spot as a finalist for the first time in his career.

The following year, Embiid and Jokic were at the top once again. While the race was much closer than the first time, Jokic remained in favor with the voters and became a back-to-back MVP winner, leaving Embiid in the runner-up seat for the second season in a row.

Last year, Embiid finally earned his first MVP hardware. In 66 games, he produced a league-high 33 points per game, averaging a double-double with ten assists per game. From the field, he knocked down 55 percent of his shots, which marked a career-high.

This year, Embiid was off to an even better start. In 34 games, he averaged 35 points, 11 rebounds and six assists. From deep, he’s shooting 37 percent. Overall, he was shooting as efficiently as last season, knocking down 53 percent of his shots on 22 attempts per game.

Will he return to the court to give the Sixers some help for their playoff push? The Sixers are hopeful but unsure. Even in the event he comes back, Embiid surely won’t be the talk of the MVP race, as Jokic is once again on the path to potentially earning his third nod.