Jason Burgos
Joel Embiid seems to think if he had the Memphis Grizzlies scorekeeper his statistics might be even more impressive and even worthy of winning Defensive Player of the Year honors.
Heading into the 2023 NBA Playoffs, Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid is seen as a favorite to win this season’s Most Valuable Player (MVP) award. The six-time All-Star’s elite-level talent at scoring is key in his chances of winning the honor, but he also takes grade pride in his defensive acumen as well.
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The 29-year-old has earned All-Defensive team honors on three occasions during his impressive career and always aims to be a force on both sides of the ball. While he is a strong contender to win the NBA’s most prestigious yearly honor, he wasn’t close to winning this year’s Defensive Player of the Year award.
On Monday, it was revealed that he finished tied for ninth in voting, and in 2022-2023 Memphis Grizzlies star Jaren Jackson Jr. was voted as the top defender in the league. Jackson Jr. winning the award isn’t necessarily a complete shock since he is a gifted defensive big man, and he actually made history as being the second youngest ever to win the award.
Joel Embiid stats (’22-’23): 33.1 PPG, 10.2 RPG, 4.2 APG, 1.0 SPG, 33% 3PT FG
However, there is some intrigue in the situation since there was a bit of controversy surrounding his stats. Earlier in the season, there was a debate on if the Memphis Grizzlies scorekeeper may have been padding Jackson Jr.’s block stats this season. He finished with the best average for blocks with 3.0, far ahead of Nic Claxton and Brook Lopez’s 2.5 per game. He also was just four shy of Lopez for total blocks despite playing in 15 fewer games this season.
In the end, the NBA looked into the issue and claimed there was no there, there when it came to the Grizzlies scorekeeper fudging the young star’s numbers. However, it did not stop Joel Embiid from taking a subtle shot at the situation and the new DPOY.
After the 76ers’ Game 2 win against the Nets on Monday night, while media were nearby, Embiid reportedly had an interesting comment while reviewing his stats from his team’s 96-84 victory.
“Only three blocks? Damn, I need the Memphis scorekeeper.”
– Joel Embiid
Joel Embiid likely knows as one of the top stars in the sport his words carry far and hold a lot of weight. Chances are he knew exactly what he was doing when he said that, and it is a pretty funny piece of shade from the Philly superstar.
