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Philadelphia 76ers superstar Joel Embiid caught a lot of flak for missing the matchup against Nikola Jokic and the Denver Nuggets. With some young fans displaying 'missing' posters to mock Embiid, others poured in their reactions to the posters.
The MVP conversation seems identical to last season in many ways. Several new names such as Jayson Tatum, Devin Booker and Luka Doncic have popped up. However, the leaders in the race are the same candidates — Nikola Jokic, Joel Embiid and Giannis Antetokounmpo.
The three bigs are torch-bearers for excellence in the NBA at the moment. At this point in the season, Jokic appears to be the clear-cut favorite to win it all again.
In this regard, Monday night's matchup between the Philadelphia 76ers and the Denver Nuggets presented an intriguing matchup between Embiid and Jokic. A clash between the NBA's premier big men. Unfortunately, Embiid was listed out of the matchup due to a calf injury.
Fans were denied an opportunity to see the two superstars go head-to-head. Some fans, however, took this as an opportunity to mock the 76ers superstar.
Posters of Embiid going 'missing' went viral before the game against the Nuggets. With the amount of traction these posters generated, NBA fans couldn't resist reacting to them.
Here are some of the best reactions from Twitter:
Embiid received a significant amount of criticism for not showing up against Jokic. In light of his comments following his 47-point performance against the Golden State Warriors, the 76ers big man has seen significant damage done to his reputation.
It is also important to note that Joel Embiid hasn't played in Denver since November 2019. There is no doubt that this will have an impact on his standing in the MVP race.
Nikola Jokic closes out the 76ers without Joel Embiid
The Philadelphia 76ers didn't have much of a chance against the Denver Nuggets. Although Tyrese Maxey put in a splendid scoring performance to keep things close, Nikola Jokic put the 76ers to rest.
Jokic notched yet another triple-double for the season on Monday night. Scoring 25 points, 17 rebounds and 12 assists, Jokic dominated in every sense of the word.
The Nuggets also saw balanced outings by the trio of Jamal Murray, Aaron Gordon and Michael Porter Jr. With three stars notching double-digit scoring, the Nuggets enjoyed a comfortable lead for most of the game.
Meanwhile, Philadelphia were severely shorthanded without Joel Embiid and James Harden. Given that their two primary scoring options were out of the rotation, there was little that the 76ers could do to come out of this game with a win.
