NBA
Who is Joel Embiid, the 2023 NBA MVP? Age, salary, family, where is he from...
Joel Embiid beat out Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo to win the NBA MVP award for the first time in his stellar career.
In the end, it was a no-brainer with Joel Embiid leading the league in scoring. While Nikola Jokic and Giannis Antetokounmpo were tempting choices, the Sixers center was a clear winner on 915 points.
The 29-year-old Cameroonian came to the US back in 2011 to attend high school in Florida. He went on to play college hoops at the University of Kansas before being drafted by the 76ers back in 2014.
Paying his dues in the league, he worked his way up to a 4 year, $210 million fully guaranteed contract with an annual salary of $52.5 million.
Growing up in Yaoundé, Cameroon, Embiid has one younger brother and one younger sister. His parents both passed away when he was young, and he was raised by his aunt and uncle. They will be all cheering louder than ever for this first of what is surely many more MVP awards to come.
“It’s been a long time coming,” said Embiid. “A lot of hard work. I’ve been through a lot. I’m not just talking about basketball. I’m talking about my life. My story. Where I come from. How I got here and what it took for me to be here.”
Averaging 33.1 points to win his second straight scoring title, Embiid also averaged 10.2 rebounds and equalled his career high with 4.2 assists per game. This award makes Embiid only the second African to win the MVP award, joining Hakeem Olajuwon who won in 1994.