3 reasons why Joel Embiid could win the scoring title in the 2021-22 NBA season

Joel Embiid finished second in the 2020-21 NBA Most Valuable Player (MVP) campaign. Embiid finished behind Serbian Nikola Jokic, his best ever showing in the MVP race. Apart from the ongoing Ben Simmons drama unfolding in Philadelphia and their loss to the Atlanta Hawks in the second round of the 2021 playoffs, Embiid continues to be the biggest reason to remain optimistic about the franchise moving forward.

Embiid has put up career bests in scoring averages (28.5 ppg), field-goal shooting efficiency (51.3%) and (37.7%) in long range shooting efficiency in his 2020-21 campaign. Had he not been limited to only 51 games, Embiid would have probably finished ahead of Jokic to win his first ever MVP award. His 28.5 ppg placed him among the top five scorers of the league in a single season, the second time Embiid has achieved this feat. Embiid ranked among the top five scoring averages in 2018-19 too when he averaged 27.5 ppg.

The question now is whether Embiid can win the scoring title, an achievement missing from his NBA career so far. He came fourth on two occasions when he cracked the top five, but is yet to do any better than that. However, there are a few reasons to believe that Embiid can add scoring title honors to his resume in the 2021-22 NBA season. We look at three such factors.

#1 Ben Simmons’s departure would mean more scoring for Joel Embiid

Washington Wizards v Philadelphia 76ers - Game Five

With the recent developments in Philadelphia, it is hard to imagine that Simmons and Embiid will play together for much longer. Simmons will most likely be traded by the 76ers, which would certainly mean more scoring opportunities for Embiid. Equally, Embiid would also be under more pressure to take on more scoring to negate the effect of Simmons’s departure from the team.

Over his four-year career in the NBA with the 76ers, Simmons averaged 15.9 ppg while also averaging 11.6 field-goal attempts. In the absence of a jump shot and a non-existent mid-range/long-range game, most of Simmons’s buckets came from close to the basket. That is exactly the preferred area of operation for Embiid. With Simmons gone, Embiid is expected to get more touches of the basketball and could end up dominating even more in areas close to the basket, resulting in a surge in his scoring output.

Also Read: What is Joel Embiid’s Current Contract?

#2 Joel Embiid is nearing his best NBA years

Philadelphia 76ers v Atlanta Hawks - Game Six

Most NBA players peak between the age of 28 to 32. As star players acquire experience and mileage in this league, they simply get better. James Harden won his three successive scoring titles between 2017 and 2020 when he was 28, 29 and 30 years old. In fact, the last six scoring titles have been won by NBA players (Stephen Curry, Russell Westbrook and Harden) aged 28 or older.

Embiid is 27 at the moment. This means we are yet to see the best of Embiid. Already, last season we saw Embiid crack the 50.0% shooting efficiency benchmark from the floor for the first time in his five-year NBA career. His scoring also hit a new high at this stage of his career. Given that a center like the great Shaquille O’Neal shot 58.2% for his career and no less than 57.2% in a single NBA season between the age of 27-32, Embiid can certainly improve his shooting efficiency, which would automatically translate into more points for the big man.

#3 Rule change on shooting fouls

We have already seen the impact the NBA’s new rule change is having on foul-hunting stars. Players like Curry and Harden aren’t getting as easily to the free throw line on these “overt, abrupt or abnormal basketball moves.” The league’s decision to not call fouls on such plays has a direct bearing on the scoring averages of these players since both Curry and Harden are excellent free throw shooters.

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This in turn affects Embiid’s chances of winning the scoring title because Curry and Harden have five of the NBA’s last six scoring titles between them. If we take Russell Westbrook into account another player previously guilty of earning trips to the charity stripe by looking to create unnecessary contact with the defensive players, that means the rule change affects the NBA’s last seven scoring title winners. A decline in Curry’s, Westbrook’s or Harden’s scoring averages could mean that Embiid finishes ahead of them without the Philadelphia having to make any big adjustments in his scoring output.