After two consecutive MVPs for the Joker, Joel Embiid deservedly took home the award last night, for the first time in his career. It was one of the more hotly contested MVP races in recent memory, but the voters clearly got it right in the end with the Philly big man. Embiid put together the best and healthiest season of his career, after beginning the year second in the preseason polls at +500. He trailed only Luka Doncic, who fell off early on with a disappointing Dallas Mavs squad. A few weeks into the regular season, the race narrowed down to Embiid, Jokic, Giannis, and an outside shot for Jayson Tatum who had a brilliant start to the season. As time went on, Tatum fell off and the race would come down to the three big men.

Jokic, who started the year at +900 would have to deal with haters getting bored of voting for the same player for the third consecutive year. Giannis was forced to miss some time due to injury, which saw his odds take a hit at the All-Star back, but a freakishly strong second half got him back in the mix. As it came down to the three international superstars, it seemed that Jokic began to take a back seat as his West leading Nuggets saved some juice for the post-season. Giannis was not consistent enough to reach the extremely high standards that he has established for himself.

In the end, there was one man that rose high above the rest, with consistent great play, carrying his team to the third seed in the tough Eastern Conference. The 76ers clearly were reliant on his dominance on both sides of the floor, and find themselves with a chance to get to the NBA finals due to his brilliance. There is no questioning the value that he brings to that team, and this season, there was no player that made a bigger impact when they were on the court than Joel Embiid. Check out the sweet graph above charting the MVP odds, over the course of the long and grueling NBA season.