Quite simply, the Sixers’ Joel Embiid should be the MVP | Keith Pompey

CLEVELAND — The race for the NBA’s MVP award is coming down the homestretch with Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokić, and Giannis Antetokounmpo all making solid cases for winning it.

The perceived frontrunner designation for the award has swung from Embiid to Jokić. Now, Antetokounmpo is making a late charge. For the most part, NBA analysts’, reporters’, and fans’ opinions are based on who has the latest eye-popping stat line or highlight play.

But anyone who has followed the NBA closely this season knows Embiid should win MVP.

His career season and leadership are the main reasons why the 76ers are closing in on a 50-win season and a Top 4 Eastern Conference playoff seed. One could argue that the Sixers would have struggled to avoid the play-in tournament if not for the five-time All-Star.

» READ MORE: Sixers’ Doc Rivers says Joel Embiid “should be the MVP”

Yet, the Sixers clinched a fifth straight playoff berth by defeating the Cleveland Cavaliers, 112-108, Sunday night at the Rocket Mortgage Fieldhouse. The fourth-place squad improved to 48-30 and are 2 1/2 games behind the first-place Miami Heat with four games remaining.

And this was definitely an MVP-type of performance for Embiid. The big fella finished with game highs of 44 points, 17 rebounds, and five blocks. Thirteen of his points and five of his rebounds came in the fourth quarter.

“He was dominant,” coach Doc Rivers said. “And you know where, he was dominant was defensively. Five blocked shots, and they were big ones. ... The defensive part of Joel needs to be talked about more. He was dominant on the defensive end.”

These types of performance has become the norm for Embiid, who is second in the league in scoring (30.2), seventh in rebounding (11.58), and ninth in blocks (1.47).

But Jokić and Antetokounmpo have captivating storylines.

Jokić is leading a depleted Denver Nuggets team to the Western Conference playoffs while being a walking triple-double. Antetokounmpo is having one of the best seasons of his career, which says a lot for the Milwaukee Bucks’ two-time MVP award winner. And let’s be real, the MVP award criteria is a little murky.

The award doesn’t typically go to the league’s best player, but the best player on of one of the top teams with a good storyline.

That enabled Steve Nash to win the award over LeBron James and Kobe Bryant during the 2005-06 season after Nash’s Phoenix Suns won 54 games.

So voters will have a lot to think about before ballots have to be submitted prior to the 11:59 p.m. deadline on April 11.

I have a vote, and to me, Embiid is the obvious choice. And it’s not because of some senseless obligation to vote for the candidate I cover. I take my role as a voter seriously, and vote for the players deserving of awards, not because of who they play for.

I voted for Jokić for MVP last season. The Nugget was also my selection as first-team All-NBA center over Embiid.

Fast forward to this season: I’m fully aware that Jokić averaged 34.8 points, 16.2 rebounds, and 8.4 assists in his last five games. But this award isn’t based on who ‘s playing the best basketball heading toward the end of the season. It’s about the entire season. It’s hard to find a player who has dominated and displayed the leadership that Embiid has throughout the season.

» READ MORE: Bad news: Sixers’ flaws show in losses to Suns, Bucks. Good news: Remaining schedule is pretty easy

“We knew where he was as a player, but it takes more to be a winner,” Rivers said. “I think Joel came in this year with the thought [that] I want to be a winner and I have to do more. I don’t know if it’s off the floor, because it’s pretty much combined.

“But his leadership during that Ben Simmons saga, if that’s what you want to call it, was phenomenal. He had his second-best player, an All-Star, out. And at All-Star break, when we made the trade or right before, we were a game out of first place in the East.”

The Sixers were actually in third place at the All-Star break, 2½ games behind the first-place Heat, thanks to Embiid.

He’s still making a major impact. Even with the addition of James Harden, Embiid still needs to play at a high level for his team to win.

And for the most part, he’s done that.

Embiid and Antetokounmpo are the only NBA players in the Top 7 in both scoring and rebounding.

He’s also on pace to become the third player in NBA history to average 30 points and 10 rebounds with at least one steal and one block for a full season. The last player to do so was Hall of Famer Bob McAdoo during the 1975-76 season.

The 28-year-old Embiid also has an NBA-leading 11 games with at least 40 points and 10 rebounds. He is the fourth player since 1980 with at least 10 such games in a season.

“Those types of players, MVP candidates, they’re impactful,” said Harden, who won the 2018 MVP as a Houston Rocket. “Numbers are one thing, but just their presence on the floor is, I think, priority No .1. Like they can shift the game. They can change the dynamic of the game. And I think he does that every single night.“

Embiid, who has played a career-best 65 games this season, often steps up his game in the clutch. Sunday night was a prime example. He struggled to make shots early on. But with the game on the line, he scored 13 fourth-quarter points on 5-for-9 shooting. He also made 4 of 5 foul shots and grabbed five rebounds in a tight final quarter.

That’s the characteristic of an MVP.

“That’s always the mindset,” Embiid said of stepping up in the fourth quarter. “I feel like in the fourth quarter or in the clutch in general, whether the numbers or percentage are better than they usual are because it’s the fourth quarter. It’s time to deliver.

“Like I said, they all look up to me, and I’ve got to figure it out. I’ve got to make things happen whether it’s offensively or defensively. So when I get to that point, it’s like I have to focus even more the whole game and figure it out.”

Embiid is tied for third in loose balls recovered per game and is one of three players in the league with at least 70 steals (74) and 90 blocks (96).

“I think he’s an underrated passer … ,” Rivers said. “He doesn’t get enough credit for it. If you look at what he’s doing this year passing the ball compared to the last two years, it’s been unbelievable.”

His passing and defensive leadership are two things that don’t always get noticed or show up on stats sheets.

“I think Joel at the five is as good of a dominant center defensively as there is in the league,” said Rivers, who had a 13-year playing career. “Because probably, he’s a scorer, it’s like Michael [Jordan] in some ways.

“No one really talked about Michael’s defense. But I can tell you he was the greatest defensive player that I played against. He was the best offensive player, too. So we don’t talk about that.”

Folks aren’t talking about Embiid’s excellence as frequently as they’ve had earlier this season, but he’s still dominating and should win the MVP award.