3 May 2023
LAWRENCE (KSNT)- Former KU men’s basketball player Joel Embiid is the 2022-23 NBA Most Valuable Player.
Embiid was runner up for the award each of the last two seasons, and now he finally takes home the hardware.
The Jayhawk alumnus averaged 33.1 points and 10.2 rebounds per game for the Philadelphia 76ers this season. Embiid played just one year with Kansas before heading to the NBA. In 2013-14 the 7-foot-0 center tallied 72 blocks and earned Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year. He led Kansas with eight double-doubles in his one year of college.
Embiid is in his seventh season playing in the NBA, he was a first round draft pick in 2014. He’s the first KU basketball alumnus to win NBA MVP since Wilt Chamberlain in 1968.
Embiid is a six-time NBA All-Star. The 76ers are currently in the Eastern Conference semi-finals against the Boston Celtics.