A lot of people has been criticizing Joel Embiid for his MVP win, with many saying that the Philadelphia 76ers star basically begged for the award. Embiid couldn't care less about the haters for sure, but he did share the reason why he's so vocal and determined to win the recognition compared to his peers.

Speaking to reporters on Wednesday, a day after his official MVP announcement, Embiid shared how important it is for him to become the league MVP. According to the Sixers big man, the victory is some sort of “validation” for all the sacrifices and hard work he put in on his craft.

“I think a lot of people have this misconception of the difference between being competitive and wanting to win everything possible. I don't want to win this award because it's just the MVP. I want to win it because it means a lot to me. I went through a lot and that's just a validation of everything, the sacrifices and everything you went through just paying off in some ways,” Embiid shared, via ESPN.

He also clarified that winning the highest individual honor in the league is just part of his competitiveness and mentality to win everything there is to get. After the MVP, he knows very well what he needs to do next: compete for the championship and take home the Larry O'Brien trophy.

So for those criticizing Joel Embiid for begging to be MVP, it's not that the Cameroonian big man is so fixated on the award. He's just obsessed to winning it all, and that's not a bad thing for people like NBA players who are always judged based on what they have accomplished.

“Obviously winning a championship is going to be way better and we have that opportunity. But I'm just competitive. I want it all. I want to win everything that I can get my hands on and everybody around me knows that. It doesn't matter if it's about basketball or if you're playing a game in life or whatever. I want to win everything. I want to be first,” Embiid added.

That is definitely the mentality that Sixers fans want to see from their superstar. Winning MVP is just one step for him. In the end, the ultimate goal remains the championship.