Joel Embiid awarded Kia Eastern Conference Player of the Month for December, broke 76ers record

December was yet another dominant month for Joel Embiid. The Sixers big man scored in bunches, crashed the glass, and anchored one of the NBA’s top rated defenses, cementing himself as the Kia Eastern Conference Player of the Month for December.

Joel Embiid took home the award for the East, while Luka Dončić won in the West:

Dallas Mavericks guard Luka Dončić and Philadelphia 76ers center Joel Embiid have been named the Kia NBA Western and Eastern Conference Players of the Month, respectively, for games played in December. pic.twitter.com/vky8RUs5GN

— NBA Communications (@NBAPR) January 3, 2023

Embiid earned the honor after leading all NBA players in scoring at 35.4 points per contest on .545 shooting from the floor and .417 from three-point range. As he led the league in scoring last season, this is far from surprising for us Sixers fans.

Embiid led the 76ers to a 9-4 record (.692) in December. This included a season-long win streak of eight gamesfrom Dec. 9-25. Philadelphia’s .692 winning percentage ranked third in the NBA throughout the month.

According to NBA.com, his totals in points (460), rebounds (129) and blocks (23) make him one of four players in league history with such numbers over 13 outings, joining himself (earlier this season), and Hall of Famers Moses Malone, Bob McAdoo and Shaquille O’Neal.

While his dominant play was clearly valuable to his team having the third best record of the month, he managed to remain outside the Top 5 of the NBA Kia Race to MVP Ladder.

This is Joel Embiid’s fifth career Player of the Month award, breaking a tie with Hall of Fame guard Allen Iverson for the most such honors in franchise history.

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Mandatory Credit: The San Diego Union-Tribune