With the direction the NBA is headed in it's time to change the requirements for All NBA.
Written by: Ben Edidin
25 May, 2022
Out of all the issues with the All NBA teams this year the biggest one has to be Joel Embiid not making All NBA First Team. Although Embiid earned Second Team honors, the MVP runner-up deserves to be on the First Team. Joel Embiid had a spectacular season as he led the league in scoring with 30.6 points per game to go along with 11.7 rebounds and elite defensive stats. He led the Philadelphia 76ers to the 2nd round of the NBA Playoffs as the 3rd seed in the Eastern Conference. Embiid put up elite numbers, but yet still finds himself on the ALL-NBA second team. Although one could argue that Giannis and Jokic put up better numbers than him, Embiid easily had a more impressive season than Devin Booker and Jason Tatum. In fact, Embiid received more first place and total votes than Tatum. So one may ask, why did Tatum make the First Team over Embiid? This is because of the unmodernized voting process used to make the ALL-NBA selections, as the selections are made based on positions. This position-based format must be changed and nobody is suffering from it more than Joel Embiid. In the last 15 NBA seasons, there have only been two MVP runner-ups that didn't make First Team All NBA both of which are Joel Embiid. For the players these accolades are more than just accomplishments, it affects their bonuses and also how their careers are evaluated after they retire. Although the NBA today is virtually position-less, guards and forwards like Booker and Tatum are awarded spots on the First Team over the more deserving players, like Joel Embiid.
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