Joel Embiid is the 2021-22 NBA scoring champion.
With the news that Giannis Antetokounmpo was out for Milwaukee’s season finale against Cleveland on Sunday, there were no challengers left to attempt to catch the Philadelphia center on the final day of the regular season.
With a scoring average of 30.6 points per game, Embiid not only becomes the first center since Shaquille O’Neal to win a scoring title (29.7 ppg in 1999-2000), he is the first center to average over 30 points per game since Moses Malone (31.1 ppg in 1981-82) when he finished as runner up for scoring title.
Embiid, who was born in Cameroon, also becomes the first international player to win an NBA scoring title and the first Sixer to lead the league in scoring since Allen Iverson won his fourth and final scoring title in 2004-05 (30.7 ppg).
Embiid essentially wrapped up the title over the past week, posting games of 44 points (April 3 at Cleveland), 45 points (April 5 at Indiana), 30 points (April 7 at Toronto) and 41 points (April 9 vs. Indiana). After his monster game against the Pacers on Saturday, Embiid held a lead that was virtually insurmountable. Embiid finished the season with the most 40-point games (13) and 30-point games (40) in the NBA.
40-Point Games, 2021-22 NBA Season
- Joel Embiid: 13
- Giannis Antetokounmpo: 10
- Trae Young: 10
- Stephen Curry: 7
Giannis and LeBron James were the two other contenders in the race over the final month of the regular season. While Embiid averaged 40.0 points over four games in the final week of the season (with one game to play on Sunday), Giannis averaged 26.3 points over four games as he was unable to keep pace. LeBron James bowed out of the race earlier this week when he was ruled out for the remainder of the regular season due to his ankle injury and was unable to reach the minimum games requirement.
30-Point Games, 2021-22 NBA Season (through April 9)
- Joel Embiid: 40
- Trae Young: 35
- Giannis Antetokounmpo: 34
- LeBorn James: 34
Embiid is also in the middle of a tightly-contested race for the Kia Most Valuable Player honors with Giannis and reigning Kia MVP Nikola Jokic as the other top contenders. While all three players have impressive resumes, Embiid claiming the scoring title can only help his case as votes are set to be cast.
Looking back at the closest scoring races in NBA history
How does this race stack up with the closest scoring races in NBA history? Over the past 51 seasons – the scoring title has been decided by scoring average since the 1969-70 season; prior to that it was decided by total points – there have been nine scoring titles decided by a smaller margin than the 0.67 points per game that separated Embiid and Antetokounmpo.
| SEASON | MARGIN | CHAMPION | RUNNER-UP |
| 1977-78 | 0.07 | George Gervin (27.22) | David Thompson (27.15) |
| 2011-12 | 0.17 | Kevin Durant (28.03) | Kobe Bryant (27.86) |
| 1997-98 | 0.42 | Michael Jordan (28.74) | Shaquille O’Neal (28.32) |
| 2009-10 | 0.44 | Kevin Durant (30.15) | LeBron James (29.71) |
| 1998-99 | 0.44 | Allen Iverson (26.75) | Shaquille O’Neal (26.31) |
| 1993-94 | 0.44 | David Robinson (29.79) | Shaquille O’Neal (29.35) |
| 1985-86 | 0.50 | Dominique Wilkins (30.33) | Adrian Dantley (29.83) |
| 2012-13 | 0.51 | Carmelo Anthony (28.66) | Kobe Bryant (28.15) |
| 2020-21 | 0.68 | Stephen Curry (31.98) | Bradley Beal (31.30) |
| 2021-22 | 0.69 | Joel Embiid (30.57) | Giannis Antetokounmpo (29.88) |
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