Joel Embiid is just the second African player to ever win the NBA MVP award. The Philadelphia 76ers superstar follows in the footsteps of the great Hakeem Olajuwon, who bagged the Most Valuable Player title back in 1994. It's been nearly three decades since an African player won the award, so Embiid's feat is an undeniably historic achievement.
Ahead of the Sixers' Game 2 matchup against the Boston Celtics, Embiid opened up about what the MVP title means to him as an African player. It has been a full-circle moment for the 29-year-old, and it is clear that he is extremely proud of his accomplishment:
“For us Africans, we don't have a lot of these opportunities,” Embiid said. “The probability of us making it here is and let alone being an MVP is probably negative zero. But improbable doesn't mean impossible.”
Words of wisdom from the 2023 MVP 💯 pic.twitter.com/hd3gKUSK75
— NBA on ESPN (@ESPNNBA) May 3, 2023
Apart from being only the second African player to ever be named the NBA MVP, Embiid is also just the sixth international player to ever bag the title. He joins an elite company alongside Olajuwon (Nigeria), Tim Duncan (U.S. Virgin Islands), Steve Nash (Canada), Giannis Antetokounmpo (Greece), and Nikola Jokic (Serbia). It is worth noting, though, that Embiid's win marks the fifth straight year that a non-U.S.-born player has bagged the title.
Embiid's message here will hopefully serve to inspire people of all nationalities and ethnicities, but most especially the youth of Africa, to reach for their dreams. The Sixers superstar is a living embodiment of how hard work absolutely pays off.
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