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Philadelphia 76ers · For the first time since 2001, the NBA MVP plays for the Philadelphia 76ers. The 2022-23 season was all about Joel Embiid, who won the award after consecutive runner-up finishes and also earned his first All-NBA First Team selection following four Second Team nods. Embiid led the league in scoring for a second straight year with a career-high 33.1 points per game on a personal-best 54.8 percent shooting. He had 44 30-point games and 13 with at least 40 while leading the 76ers to 54 wins — the most of his seven seasons — and the team’s sixth consecutive playoff berth. In his first full season in Philly, James Harden averaged 21.0 points and a league-leading 10.7 assists per game, the second time in Harden’s 14-year career that he led the NBA in assists. Harden also shot 38.5 percent from downtown, the second-best mark he’s ever posted. Third-year guard Tyrese Maxey enjoyed the best year of his career beside Embiid and Harden, averaging 20.3 points per game on 43.4 percent shooting from behind the arc — both career-bests. The 76ers boasted the fourth-rated offensive unit in the league while finishing eighth on defense, allowing the third-fewest points per game. The team swept the Brooklyn Nets in the first round of the playoffs before falling to the second-seeded Boston Celtics in seven games in the semifinals. · State of Mint