Sixers GM Elton Brand gives his thoughts on Joel Embiid winning MVP
BOSTON–Philadelphia 76ers big man Joel Embiid has been through a lot in his NBA career. From having to battle back through devastating injuries and having to miss the first two full seasons of his career to have to deal with the passing of his brother to all of the other obstacles he’s had to overcome, he’s persevered through it all.
On Tuesday, he was named the MVP of the 2022-23 season after he led the league in scoring at 33.1 points per game, grabbed 10.2 rebounds per game, and dished out 4.2 assists per game. He also averaged 1.7 blocks as he was dominant on both ends of the floor in order to help Philadelphia have as much success as it did.
General manager Elton Brand has not only been the GM of the Sixers since the 2018-19 season, but he was also a teammate of Embiid’s for a brief time in the 2015-16 season. He understands the work he has had to put in to get to this point in his career.
“Just all the hard work behind the scenes that people don’t see, it’s special to see,” Brand told Sixers Wire. “I’ve seen what it took for him to get to this level and I’m just so proud of him.”
Embiid has not only grown as a basketball player, he’s also grown as a human being during his time with the Sixers. He has been able to take his game to another level and he has been able to grow as a leader which is not always talked about with him.
“Just as a human, he talks down his leadership, but he’s really grown as a leader and he knows winning a championship starts with him and an MVP level every night,” Brand added. “He knows that and he’s shown that to his teammates and the organization.”
For Embiid and the Sixers, this is a wonderful achievement for the big fella. However, they still have a lot of work to do. They want to win a championship and they have been presented with a great opportunity to do so. They have to keep working and get to the mountaintop.
