As most fans are probably aware by now, this year’s KIA MVP award went to the Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid. It was an emotional moment for the Cameroon native who came a long way to win the Most Valuable Player award. Shortly after Embiid was named the winner, a rare photo of the 76ers star donning a Kobe Bryant jersey began making rounds on social media, leaving fans awestruck over his amazing journey.

Having credited the Los Angeles Lakers legend for where he is today, Embiid fell in love with the game due to Bryant but what intrigued fans even more was what he did in order to become a better shooter once he made it into the league.

How Kobe Bryant made Joel Embiid fall in love with the game

The third overall pick in the 2014 draft, Joel Embiid did not play his first NBA game until the 2016-17 NBA season. The seven-foot big man missed two years due to injury but the way he flourished afterward earned him his nickname.

Joel ‘The Process’ Embiid only went towards an upward trajectory as each year passed in the league. After being snubbed for the past two seasons for the MVP award, the 76ers star finally got vindication this year.

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As the five-time All-Star won the award, a rare photo of Embiid donning a Kobe Bryant jersey started making the rounds on social media. According to an article by L.A. Times, Embiid credited Bryant as the reason why he fell in love with the game. The very first NBA game that Embiid got to watch was the Lakers going up against the Boston Celtics in the 2010 NBA finals and that’s all it took for “The Process” to fall in love with basketball.

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Fans were taken aback by Embiid

Host of NBA 2KTV, Alexis Morgan congratulated Joel Embiid for winning the 2023 KIA MVP award. Originally posted by Yaron Weitzman of Fox Sports, Morgan reshared Embiid’s old picture with the caption stating how he learned to shoot in order to improve his game which drew fans’ attention.

In response, one fan tweeted, “Did he actually do that? That’s what he searched?”

While another fan commented, “Thats a wild search term.”

Here are a few more reactions from fans on Twitter.

While some fans were taken aback as to what he searched in order to shoot better, others credited him for how far he has come today.

Kudos to Joel Embiid for finally winning the MVP award after being in contention for the past few years.

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