76ers’ Joel Embiid Eyes 2023 NBA Title After Earning MVP: ‘I Want to Win Everything’

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Philadelphia 76ers superstar center Joel Embiid finally got his long-awaited NBA MVP award Tuesday, besting Denver Nuggets center Nikola Jokić and Milwaukee Bucks forward Giannis Antetokounmpo.

But Embiid told reporters Wednesday that he’s already thinking about his next goal—winning a championship:

“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.”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’s teammates got him one step closer to a title with a surprising Game 1 win over the Boston Celtics in the Eastern Conference Semifinals even though he was sidelined with an LCL sprain. He’s hoping to play in Game 2 on Wednesday, although an official decision still hasn’t been made either way.

If the Sixers steal a second game in Boston and take a 2-0 lead in the series heading back to Philadelphia, they’d be in an excellent position to get past the second round for the first time in the Embiid era. That would be the next step toward “winning everything” for the newly minted MVP.