Suns Star Kevin Durant Makes His Pick for 2022/23 NBA MVP

• Phoenix Suns star Kevin Durant has picked Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid to win the 2022/23 MVP award
• Embiid, Denver Nuggets center and Milwaukee Bucks superstar Giannis Antetokounmpo have been in a tight MVP race all season
• Embiid has finished second in MVP voting in the last two seasons

The 2022/23 NBA MVP race has been one for the ages. With the regular season coming to an end, one of Joel Embiid or Nikola Jokic, or Giannis Antetokounmpo will walk away with the award.

Denver Nuggets center Jokic has been the frontrunner for most of this season, but Philadelphia's Embiid produced a superb run last month to give him a slight edge. Kevin Durant feels Embiid should win the award.

The Cameroon big man finished second in MVP voting in the last two seasons behind Jokic. He is averaging 33.1 points in 66 games and has led the 76ers to the 3rd seed in the Eastern Conference.

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Jokic is also having a historic season. He has led the Nuggets to the No. 1 seed in the West, averaging a near triple-double (24.5/11.8/9.8). He has won the last two MVP awards.

Meanwhile, Antetokounmpo has led the Milwaukee Bucks to the No. 1 seed in the East, averaging 31.1 points per game in 63 NBA games.

Embiid now leads the NBA MVP ladder, with Joikic and Antetokounmpo in second and third, respectively.

Durant makes his pick

Durant won the award in 2014 and is one of the NBA's best players. He knows what it takes to win the award. In a recent episode of The ETCs, the 34-year-old veteran picked Embiid to win the award.

He was asked who he wants to win.

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"Joel Embiid. It's a constant conversation that I'm tired of but its good to see so many skilled players stepping up and playing like MVPs. It's good for the game of basketball...I didn't wanna pick because I knew I'm going to get Jokic fans on my timeline and Giannis fans."

Embiid has already secured the scoring title, becoming the first center to win two straight scoring since Bob McAdoo, who won it three straight times from 1974-76, per CBS Sports.

If Embiid wins the award, he will also become the first African-born player to win the award since Hakeem Olajuwon in 1994.

Curry on MVP race

Sports Brief earlier reported on Golden State Warriors superstar Stephen Curry weighing in on the MVP race between Embiid and Jokic.

The two-time winner of the award in 2015 and 2016 said Embiid has the edge over Jokic and Milwaukee's Giannis Antetokounmpo.

"Joel took a leap that I think a lot of people didn't expect because he was dominant already...That leap turned heads and put [the Philadelphia 76ers] in a great position. If I had to pick, it would be him."