Joel Embiid has been on a mission this year to defend his MVP title. The Philadelphia 76ers superstar has been unstoppable and has been receiving plaudits left, right, and center after many doubted his MVP award last year. Notably, after a recent significant performance against the Charlotte Hornets away from home, Embiid received MVP chants from Hornets fans. Also, Joel’s impressive run so far helped him match and break multiple records including that of legendary centers Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain. But can Embiid assert himself as one of the most dominant centers ever?

O’Neal and Chamberlain are two of the most dominant centers the league has ever seen. Both legends were physically imposing and were matchup nightmares for their opponents.

Joel Embiid’s historic run

Even though Joel Embiid is 7′ and 280 lbs, many do not consider him as physically dominating as Shaquille O’Neal or Wilt Chamberlain. However, the reigning MVP makes up for his lack of physicality compared to the legendary centers with his incredible skills. Notably, he is seen as a more skillful version of O’Neal by many.

Even though many Shaq fans might not agree with the notion, Embiid’s performances have been nothing short of dominant. Notably, former teammate Danny Green recently called Joel a “7-foot Kobe-Shaq” a few weeks back.

Recently, Embiid became just the third player in fifty years to score 30+ points and grab 10+ rebounds in 10 straight games. The other two are Hall of Famers Moses Malone and O’Neal who did it for 11 consecutive games. The 6x NBA All-Star did it in style with 42 points and 15 rebounds handing the Hornets their worst loss (135-82) in 23 years.

Furthermore, he did it in just 30 minutes displaying his dominance, efficiency, and impact. This was met with MVP chants from the Hornets fans. In the recent loss against the Chicago Bulls, Joel yet again had 30+ points and 10+ rebounds and tied Malone and Shaq’s record of 11. With his current form, he looks likely to break the record in the next game.

Also, this is Embiid’s second 10-game scoring streak of 30+ points, which makes him only the seventh player in NBA history to do it multiple times. The other six legends to do it are Tiny Archibald, Jerry West, Elgin Baylor, Wilt Chamberlain, Michael Jordan, and Kobe Bryant.

Interestingly, Embiid has finished off his opponents so early and only played in 13 fourth quarters in 23 games. With this, the center has more points than minutes played this season! In 783 minutes, he scored 792 points along with 271 rebounds, 138 assists, 25 steals, and 44 blocks as per NBA.com! The only other player to have more points than minutes played in a season was Wilt Chamberlain.

Shaquille O’Neal was unstoppable

Shaquille O’Neal took the Orlando Magic to the NBA Finals in just his second year in the league. Even though O’Neal was expected to turn the fortunes of the Magic, not many imagined he would do it immediately. He played a massive role in beating Michael Jordan and the Bulls on their way to the finals as well.

Due to contract issues with Magic, the Big Diesel joined the Los Angeles Lakers in a blockbuster move after five seasons in Orlando. As expected, he strengthened the team instantly. After a few years of playoff disappointment, Shaq led the team to three straight titles. Even the Showtime Lakers were not able to achieve this.

Also, he won three straight Finals MVPs for his efforts. Notably, O’Neal and Jordan are the only players in history to win it for three consecutive years. He won the MVP title in 2000 and was a 2x scoring champion as well. Shaq then moved to the Miami Heat and clinched his fourth and final ring.

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In his first 10 years in the league, he averaged 28.1 points, 12.9 rebounds, and 2.3 blocks per game as per Basketball Reference. The Hall of Famer is currently 8th in points, 15th in rebounds, and 8th in blocks in the All-Time list, making him one of the best players ever. Shaq is one of only three players ever to score 60 points with 20 rebounds. Also, he has the highest-scoring average of points for centers in the Finals. While he is criticized for his poor free throw record, O’Neal is the only player to lead the league in field goal percentage 10 times which is a testament to his dominance.

Wilt Chamberlain set multiple unreal records

We would run out of time if we listed every record of the All-Time Great Wilt Chamberlain. The Hall of Famer was unstoppable throughout his career and made some wild records, many of which are still a long way from being broken. Notably, Chamberlain’s single-game record of 100 points without the help of three-pointers is astonishing. It is likely the record might never be broken.

The legendary center also has the highest points per game average for a season when he averaged an unreal 50.4 points during the 1961-62 season. This helped him set the record for most points in a season with 4,029. He also had 25.7 rebounds per game that year. Furthermore, Wilt also has the second-best points per game and points in a season. He did it in the very next season when he scored 3,586 points averaging 44.8 points per game.

Chamberlain has the most 50-point games with a whopping 118. Michael Jordan comes second with 31! The legendary center also owns the record for most field goals made without a miss with 18. And he did that thrice in his career! Wilt was the first player ever to score 30,000 points. He currently sits 7th in points with 31,419. However, his rebound number seems impossible to reach with 23,924. If blocks were tracked during his time, it is safe to say that he would be top-5 in that category comfortably.

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Chamberlain has won the MVP award four times and is one of just three players to secure it for three straight years. He also clinched two championships during his career. Even though he struggled in his final few seasons, his career average is still high at 30.1 points and 22.9 rebounds per game in 1045 games.

Joel Embiid is one of the most dominant centers

Shaquille O’Neal and Wilt Chamberlain have set some unbelievable records during their legendary careers. Both were superstars with a huge spotlight on them even before they entered the league. However, the massive expectation did not put pressure on them. They took the league by storm and dominated from day 1. The same cannot be said about Joel Embiid who missed the first two years in the league.

However, he came back strong and has been a real asset to his team. Joel has been in the race for the MVP for multiple years now. A few seasons back, he became the first center since O’Neal to win the scoring title. He did it again last season and finally clinched the coveted MVP title. Most importantly, the towering center has been consistently improving.

Recently, his teammate Tyrese Maxey expressed his bewilderment about Embiid’s continuous improvement. The MVP striving to progress is certainly great for his team. With his current form and streak, Joel looks set to regain the title if he stays healthy. Also, he is bound to break other records as well.

He still has a long way to go to reach the levels of O’Neal and Chamberlain. However, he is arguably the most dominant center the league has seen after Shaq. If he can continue his dominant performances in the seasons to come, Embiid can etch his name alongside Shaq and Wilt as one of the most dominant centers ever.

Editorial Disclaimer: The views expressed are those of the author and do not necessarily reflect the views of EssentiallySports.