Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid got the whole NBA world buzzing after he outdueled Nikola Jokic and destroyed the Denver Nuggets in their first meeting this 2022-23 season. In fact, Draymond Green, Andre Iguodala and several other current and former players loved the match-up and couldn't help but heap praise on the Sixers big man.

Embiid clearly played against Jokic with plenty of motivation. The Nuggets star has beaten him for MVP in the past two years, but on Saturday, the Cameroon-born star was the most valuable and best player on the court.

The 28-year-old Embiid exploded for 47 points on 18-of-31 shooting in the contest and filled out other parts of the stat sheet. He finished with 18 rebounds, five assists, three steals and two blocks in 47 minutes of action. He was unstoppable throughout, helping the Sixers come back from a 15-point deficit to win 126-119.

Jokic, for his part, had another near triple-double of 24 points, eight rebounds and nine assists. Nonetheless, he was less effective on Saturday afternoon after committing seven turnovers.

Several NBA stars quickly took to Twitter to share their reactions on the epic battle. Draymond Green loved the showdown between Joel Embiid and Nikola Jokic, writing, “They letting Joel and Jok bump. I like it!!”

Meanwhile, Andre Iguodala didn't hold back in his praise of Embiid and said, “Embiid da goD…”

In similar fashion, former NBA big man Kendrick Perkins called all fans to give the Sixers star the respect he deserves.

“Put some MF Respect on Embiid name. That’s how you make a statement and kick some ass big fella!!! He gave Jokic that straight Work… a 47 piece wing dinner “All Flats” with 18 biscuits and a MONSTER on the defensive end!!! Carry the hell on…,” Perkins wrote.

Bobby Portis added that he thinks Embiid really took the match with Jokic “personal,” while Chandler Parsons noted it is a big “statement game” for JoJo.

Embiid definitely balled out against Jokic and deserves all the recognition he's getting. After that performance, though, we can't wait for their second and final meeting in the regular season in March.