On April 11, the NBA regular season entered the final stage, and many teams, including the 76ers and Bucks, officially ended their regular season journey. Among them, as Bucks star Alphabet Brother confirmed that he would not play today, Philadelphia 76ers star Joel Embiid confirmed the 2021-22 league scoring champion, the first center scoring champion since Shaquille O'Neal in the 1999-2000 season. So far this season, Embiid has averaged 30.6 points, 11.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.5 blocks per game, competing as a leader in the MVP.
Due to the loneliness of the 21st century center position, no center has made the scoring list in 20 years since O'Neal, and Embiid, who is known for his comprehensive offensive skills, opened the record. Even so, Embiid has several strong contenders this season, and the scoring champion title is not settled until the final game of the regular season, which can be described as a thrill to win.
How hard is it for a center to be the leading scorer? So far, only six centers, including Embiid, have won the scoring championship, and they have won a total of 14 scoring awards. Next, let's take stock of the 6 centers in NBA history.
Wilt Chamberlain: 7-time scoring champion in 1960-66
In 14 years of his career, he won the leading scorer seven times and averaged 45.8 minutes per game – "Mr. One Hundred Points" Wilt Chamberlain was the only player in that era. In 1960-66, he was named the NBA leading scorer seven times in a row. With a career average of 30.1 points, 22.9 rebounds and 4.4 assists per game, not only was he the first in the history of playing time per game, the second in scoring per game (after Jordan's 30.12 points), and the first in the history of rebounds per game, there is no doubt that he ruled that era. In the 61-62 season, Chamberlain played in 80 games for the Warriors, averaging 50.4 points, 25.7 rebounds and 2.4 assists per game, averaging 39.5 shots per game, including 50.4 points per game and 39.5 shots per game.
Elvin Hayes: Leading scorer in the 1968–69 season
As the 1968 winner, Ervin Hayes averaged 28.4 points per game in his rookie season, becoming the league's top scorer. In addition to scoring, he can also grab 17.1 rebounds per game. Perhaps people weren't too surprised by his performance, as hayes, who had been famous for a long time, averaged 36.8 points and 18.9 rebounds a game in the year before entering the NBA, in 1967-68, leading the University of Houston to final four for the second consecutive year and being named the NCAA Player of the Year. In his 16-year career, Ervin Hayes scored 27,313 points (11th all-time), 16,279 rebounds (4th all-time) and 50,000 minutes (7th all-time) with his precise turn jump shot and strong interior dominance.
Karim Abdul-Jabbar: 1970-71, 71-72 leading scorer
"Only 2 scoring kings" may be a bit unbelievable to the historical scoring kings, but the stable super strength of "Skyhook" Jabbar is undoubtedly an important factor in his becoming a legend. In the 1970–71 season, Abdul-Jabbar scored 31.7 points in his second year to win the leading score. The following season, he averaged 44.2 minutes per game and had 34.8 points, 16.6 rebounds and 4.6 assists. In addition to the scoring king, Abdul-Jabbar has won the regular season MVP 6 times in his career, the most in history. In the 20 years of his career, he averaged 24.6 points, 11.2 rebounds and 3.6 assists per game, and was nearly perfect on both ends of the offensive and defensive ends.
David Robinson: Leading scorer in the 1993–94 season
"Admiral" David Robinson, who spent all 14 years of his career with the Spurs, won the only scoring title of his career in the 1993-94 season, averaging 29.8 points, 10.7 rebounds, 4.8 assists, 1.7 steals and 3.3 blocks per game. In that center's heyday, being able to perform so comprehensively is enough to prove his personal strength. Throughout his career, he has won points, rebounds and blocks, averaging 21.1 points, 10.6 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 1.4 steals and 3.0 blocks per game, the third in Spurs history besides Duncan and Gervin.
Shaquille O'Neal: 1994-95, 99-00 leading scorer
When it comes to the most dominant center, O'Neill is often one of the top choices in people's minds. Throughout his career, he won the scoring championship with the Magic and lakers. In 1994-95, O'Neal scored the same 29.3 points as the previous season, successfully crowning himself the top scorer; in the 1999-00 season, he averaged 29.7 points per game, which was the last time a center player won the top scorer. That season, he scored a career-high 61 points against the Clippers. In the 19 years of his career, O'Neal averaged 23.7 points, 10.9 rebounds, 2.5 assists, 0.6 steals, 2.3 blocks, and won four NBA championships, and at his peak he was considered the most dominant center.
Joel Embiid: Leading scorer for the 2021-2022 season
For the 28-year-old Embiid, it was a season in which he achieved self-breakthrough. He has made 68 appearances for the team this season, the most appearances of his career so far. From beginning to end in the regular season, he carried the 76ers on his shoulders and maintained a high level of competition. Born in Cameroon, Embiid also became the first international player to win the regular season scoring champion. He also broke some other records. Embiid also became the least average regular-season scorer in league history. Curry previously held that record in 34.2 minutes. Embiid averaged only 33.8 minutes per game this season, which is enough to show his efficiency. Embiid has averaged 30.6 points, 11.7 rebounds, 4.2 assists, 1.1 steals and 1.5 blocks per game this season, making him one of the strongest contenders for the regular season MVP. Embiid in the East, Jokic in the West, strong and strong, we have reason to believe that the new center may really come.