A weight seemed to be lifted off Joel Embiid's shoulders when the Philadelphia 76ers star learned that he won the 2023 NBA MVP award. A video posted to the 76ers' official Twitter account showed Embiid's emotional reaction to the live announcement while being congratulated by his Sixers teammates.

Joel Embiid smiled wide and put his head in his hands when he heard Charles Barkley announce on TNT that he was named the 2023 NBA MVP. Embiid was surrounded by the rest of the Sixers, who erupted with applause and mobbed their starting center. James Harden wrapped Embiid in a big hug while Tyrese Maxey and Tobias Harris showed their teammate love.

Embiid has made it no secret that it's been important to him to be recognized as the league's most valuable player.

Embiid finally won the MVP award after coming ever so close in consecutive years. The Sixers' big man was the runner-up to Denver Nuggets star Nikola Jokic in both 2021 and 2021. This time around, it was Jokic who finished second in the voting.

The 2023 MVP race wasn't a close one. Embiid received 73 of a possible 100 first-place votes. With 25 second-place votes and a pair of third-place votes, Embiid received 915 total MVP points. Jokic had 674 MVP points. Giannis Antetokounmpo received 606 points for third place in the MVP voting.

In 66 regular-season games, Embiid averaged 33.1 points, 10.2 rebounds and 4.2 assists per game. Philadelphia earned the third-best record in the Eastern Conference.

Harden led the Sixers past the Boston Celtics in Game 1 of their second-round playoff series. Embiid missed the contest with a knee injury and is doubtful to play in Game 2 Wednesday.