As Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets visited Philly Saturday night, Joel Embiid, this year’s biggest snub among the 2023 All-Star game starters, made sure he was all prepared to put up a show against the leader in the MVP race and the #1 team in the West.
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And man, did he not pull it off to perfection! The Sixers’ big man went for 47 points, 18 rebounds, and 5 assists in a 126-119 win, while the Joker could come up with 24/8/9 in a statement game. It was a tremendous performance on its own but was just not enough to win the game.
Joel Embiid says Nikola Jokic is the motivation to win it all
It was one thing if the 5x All-Star had just dominated the game on offense and the board like the Nuggets’ MVP, but Joel was a menace on defense as well coming up with 3 steals and 2 blocks.
In the post-game presser, Embiid talked about if playing against 2x MVP Nikola Jokic adds any added motivation, having lost to him as a runner-up in both those years.
“Not necessarily,” Embiid said after the game according to Sixers Wire. “I’m used to it. It’s not the first time. I think he’s more of a motivation to go out and try to win the whole thing, I guess that’s the only way I’m probably gonna get that respect. I think we got to pretty good chance. You play the best team in the West down 15 points or something like that, and to come back and to be able to win the game, that gives us a lot of confidence.”
Well, if indeed Embiid and the Sixers make it out of the East, and the Joker and the Nuggets do the same in the West, could become the best NBA Finals we have seen in a while.
How good are Nuggets at home?
One thing about Jokic’s team this season, they have been their record in Denver. They are 22-4, the Grizzlies (20-3) and the Cavaliers (20-5) are the closest to them.
If the Nuggets do make it out of the Western Conference this season, it will be a lot tougher for the team from the East to win the Championship if they don’t have a better record.
So, Joel Embiid and Doc Rivers must be keeping that in mind as well. They have the same number of losses (16) as the Nuggets after handing them the recent L but have played 2 lesser games, collecting 34 wins. Only the Boston Celtics have a better record than these two in the league currently.
