NBA: Embiid makes his improbable MVP dream come true

NEW YORK—Joel Embiid played volleyball and football as a child growing up in Cameroon, never turning to basketball until age 15. Now he's the NBA's Most Valuable Player.

The 29-year-old power forward reflected on his improbable journey when he spoke Wednesday after practice for the Philadelphia 76ers as they prepared to face the Boston Celtics in the second round of the NBA playoffs.

"Probably the probability of someone like me, starting playing basketball at 15, to get the chance to be the MVP of the league is I'd say probably negative zero," Embiid said.

"But improbable doesn't mean impossible and you can accomplish anything you set your mind to as long as you believe in it and you keep working hard, anything can happen."

For Embiid, it happened after he switched sports as a child and was seen by Cameroonian NBA player Luc Mbah a Moute, who helped him move to the United States at age 16 to boost his dreams of playing in the NBA.

After a youth career and a season at the University of Kansas, Embiid was the third overall selection in the 2014 NBA Draft by the 76ers.

Embiid stepped up his game as the years went along, having been an NBA All-Star since 2018 and winning the league scoring crown last season and this season with career highs of 30.6 points in 2021-22 and 33.1 points a game in 2022-2023.

This year, he claimed the MVP award, defeating the past two MVPs, Denver's Nikola Jokic and Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"Feels good obviously," Embiid said. "That's something that I dreamt of and I've always wanted."

No MVP has then led his club to an NBA playoff crown since Stephen Curry of the Golden State Warriors in 2015.

Embiid hopes to end that drought despite suffering a sprained right knee and missing the opener of the best-of-seven series against Boston.

While he feels healthy after some rest following a first-round triumph, Embiid says doctors will largely dictate when he returns.

"I'm going to listen to those guys and see what they have to say, the doctors," Embiid said.

"Obviously I want to play. Everybody knows me. I just love being on the court. If I've got the green light then we're going to go ahead."

Agence France-Presse

WATCH: Curry accepts 2nd NBA MVP trophy in front of Warrior fans

Golden State superstar Stephen Curry, NBA’s first-ever unanimous MVP winner, accepted his second MVP in front of the Warrior fans at Oracle Arena ahead of game five of the Western Conference semifinals.

The Warriors moved on to the WCF Finals after ousting the Portland Trailblazers in five games.

source: sports.inquirer.net

Curry says he’s a big fan of Messi

Stephen Curry may have been wreaking havoc in the NBA leading the Golden State Warriors to an unparalleled 16-0 start, but there’s still another diminutive mega star he’s a big fan off.

Lionel Messi, who been tearing it in Europe while playing for FC Barcelona, is someone the NBA MVP looks up to and someone whose moves Curry watches out for.

“We both have a creative style, where it’s just about a feel when you’re out on the pitch or the court. I try to do some fancy things out there with both hands, making crossover moves and kind of having a certain creativity and flair to my game,” Curry said in a conference call with members of the media.

With an NBA MVP and a Larry O’Brien trophy in tow, Curry has cemented himself as one of the elites of his era while Messi has a trophy case which features four Ballon d’Ors enough to put him in the discussion as one of the greatest ever.

While Messi can blaze through defenses giving nutmegs to defenders and goals behind goalkeepers, Curry for his part primarily puts defenders on skates while shooting long balls as if it were layups.

Curry said Messi’s style of play has that certain creativity he likes to emulate to his game.

“I love watching him play. I’m a big fan. And to see just a guy that you never know what he’s going to do at any particular moment—when he’s on TV, everybody is glued in because, as soon as he gets a touch with the ball, something special could happen. And you’ve got to appreciate that kind of talent,” Curry said.

source: sports.inquirer.net