Coming into the season, the Philadelphia Sixers big man Joel Embiid was one of the favorites to win the NBA's MVP award, an award that was won by the Houston Rockets' James Harden.
An article in The Athletic details how Embiid thinks of himself as the ‘James Harden of big men' and citing a story with Dwight Howard as an example:
“An irate Howard complained to an official that the swipe-through move shouldn’t be rewarded but started to chuckle when Embiid whispered something as he walked to free throw line. Asked later what Embiid stated that was so funny, Howard shook his head and said, “Blame James Harden.”
When reminded of that exchange with Howard, Embiid flashed a grin and added, “I did that three times in a row. He didn’t learn from it. And I did it again the next game and I was like, ‘You stupid or what?’
“I’ve said it before; I’m the James Harden of bigs. I know how to draw fouls.”
Embiid is not only comparable to Harden just because he can draw fouls but also because of the skill level he brings at his position. Harden is known for his array of moves that he can bring out at any given time and Embiid has shown that he has his own bag of tricks. He even has the Euro-step that Harden has made famous.
If Embiid can continue to dominate with his play and establish the Sixers as one of the league's elite teams, maybe the MVP award is something he'll have in common with Harden as well.
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