Getty Joel Embiid holds his son while accepting the NBA MVP trophy.
Joel Embiid tried to play it cool when asked about the MVP race during the regular season, but the Philadelphia 76ers star let his emotions flow when he finally received the award — and shared a special moment with his young son during it.
Embiid was awarded his first-career MVP honor on May 2, beating out two-time winner Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets to win the award. He was given the trophy before Friday’s playoff game against the Boston Celtics, and Embiid decided to share the spotlight with his 2-year-old son, Arthur, in a moment that caught some viral attention.
Joel Embiid Opens Up on Fatherhood as He Wins MVP Award
As he accepted the honor prior to Friday’s game, Embiid called out to his young and asked him to come over to him. Embiid grew emotional as he picked up his son, wiping tears from his eyes.
After regaining his composure, the Sixers big man gave credit to Arthur for helping to shape his career.
Joel Embiid, the Kia NBA MVP and recipient of the Michael Jordan Trophy, is joined in celebration by his son!
“Honestly, he’s the main reason why I’m really here,” Embiid said as he held his son.
“Becoming a father changed my whole life and I just wanted to show him a good example and I’m glad he is here with us and my fiancée is a big part of it, too,” he added.
Embiid had one of the best statistical seasons of his career, averaging 33.1 points per game to earn his second consecutive scoring title. Embiid also averaged 10.2 rebounds and a career-high 4.2 assists per game, leading the Sixers to the third overall seed in the Eastern Conference.
The Sixers went on to lose Friday’s game 114-102, falling in a 2-games-to-1 hole in the second-round Eastern Conference series.
Joel Embiid Downplayed MVP Race During Season
Throughout the season, Embiid put off questions about the personal importance of winning the MVP award, saying he wasn’t motivated by personal accolades and that the potential to win his first career NBA title was motivation enough.
“I don’t know. That’s not for me to answer,” Embiid said in March when asked about whether he thought he deserved the award. “I feel like, obviously, being in the running for the last few years has been whatever, and this year I’ve taken a different approach, trying to focus on the right things: win games, dominate, which I’ve been doing. Whatever happens, happens. Obviously, it would mean a lot to win one. That’s the best award anyone can get, but, like I said, I’m just focused on making sure on, first of all, staying healthy, winning games, and dominating.”
After actually taking home the honor, Embiid admitted that it had always been one of his top aspirations.
“Thank you. It’s amazing. It feels good, obviously. That’s something that I dreamed of and I always wanted, especially when I started playing basketball,” Embiid said, via USA Today’s Sixers Wire. “That was always the goal. Obviously, there’s other goals, but this is just one step to what I want to accomplish, which is to win championships. We’re right there. So it felt pretty good.”