James Harden may have just joined the Philadelphia 76ers, but he's been in the NBA for quite some time. In over a decade of professional basketball, Harden has played with and against some of the greatest basketball players of all time. That being said, the former MVP's opinion on this year's honor shouldn't be overlooked.

According to Harden, Joel Embiid deserves the regular-season MVP award. His new Sixers teammate is neck-and-neck with Nikola Jokic of the Denver Nuggets and Giannis Antetokounmpo of the Milwaukee Bucks.

Harden acknowledged Embiid's importance and impact on the Sixers, quotes courtesy of ESPN.

“He deserves it, man. I've only been here for a few weeks, but I already see his mindset. He wants to win. Some guys just want numbers, but he has both. He has the mentality of winning, and he scores the ball at a high level. I think he's prepared himself, especially coming off last year, for this year to be one of his best years,” Harden said.

Embiid is second in the league in points per game this season with an average of 29.8, only behind LeBron James of the Los Angeles Lakers. The Sixers big man also puts up 4.3 assists and 11.3 rebounds each game. He has led his team to a dominating record of 45-27 and the third-place spot in the Eastern Conference.

Embiid will attempt to prove his argument for MVP when the Sixers take on the Los Angeles Clippers Friday night.