The individual rivalry between superstars Nikola Jokic and Joel Embiid is among the best in the modern-day NBA.
There's no denying their status as the best centers in the world. Jokic's run of three MVPs in four years was interrupted by Embiid, who took home the honor after the 2022-23 NBA season. One year later, the individual rivalry has taken on an international flair with the two meeting during the 2024 Olympic cycle.
While Embiid is on board with Team USA to help the program pursue a fifth-straight Olympic gold medal, Jokic looks to lead Serbia back to the podium after winning silver at the 2016 games.
With a chance to lead their respective teams to the gold medal game, Embiid and Jokic meet again. As the superstars look to add yet another accolade to their already impressive resumes, here's a look at how the two measure up with one another individually.
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Nikola Jokic vs. Joel Embiid: Regular season stats
Each player's path to superstardom makes this comparison all the more interesting. Both were selected in the 2014 NBA Draft but Embiid was the third overall pick while Jokic was selected 41st.
And while Jokic's rookie season in the NBA was delayed by a year as he remained in Europe, he still debuted before Embiid, who missed the first two seasons of his NBA career due to injury. Embiid's injury history and Jokic's rise from being relatively unknown to becoming a household name may not be reflected in the numbers, but they do provide important context.
Jokic's averages are impacted by having a lesser role during his early years while Embiid's totals are impacted by the number of games he's missed. Still, each center has the edge in several statistical categories.
MORE: An injury history timeline for 76ers and Team USA center Joel Embiid
Per game stats
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Points | 20.9 | 27.9 |
| Rebounds | 10.7 | 11.2 |
| Assists | 6.9 | 3.6 |
| Steals | 1.2 | 0.9 |
| Blocks | 0.7 | 1.7 |
| Turnovers | 2.9 | 3.4 |
| Minutes | 31.2 | 31.9 |
| Field goal % | 55.7 | 50.4 |
| 3-point % | 35.0 | 34.1 |
| Free throw % | 82.7 | 82.6 |
Total stats
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Games | 675 | 433 |
| Points | 14,139 | 12,071 |
| Rebounds | 7,249 | 4,832 |
| Assists | 4,667 | 1,573 |
| Steals | 822 | 397 |
| Blocks | 491 | 720 |
| Turnovers | 1,946 | 1,485 |
| Minutes | 21,078 | 13,833 |
MORE: Ranking all 108 U.S. men's basketball Olympians since the 1992 Dream Team
Nikola Jokic vs. Joel Embiid: Regular season advanced stats
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Player Efficiency Rating | 28.1 | 28.5 |
| Value Over Replacement | 63.4 | 31.4 |
| Box Plus/Minus | 9.9 | 7.0 |
| Win Shares | 111.6 | 63.5 |
| True Shooting % | 63.5 | 61.5 |
| Usage % | 27.0 | 35.5 |
Nikola Jokic vs. Joel Embiid: Playoff stats
There's no denying that Jokic has experienced much more postseason success than Embiid. In addition to capturing an NBA title and Finals MVP honors in 2023, Jokic advanced to the conference finals in 2020 while Embiid has yet to advance past the second round in seven playoff appearances.
Naturally, with deeper runs comes higher totals but Jokic's averages also suggest that he rises to another level when the stakes are higher. For Embiid, injuries have put a damper on his playoff performances.
Per game stats
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Points | 27.7 | 24.9 |
| Rebounds | 12.3 | 10.9 |
| Assists | 7.5 | 3.1 |
| Steals | 1.1 | 0.8 |
| Blocks | 0.9 | 1.7 |
| Turnovers | 3.2 | 3.7 |
| Minutes | 38.0 | 35.3 |
| Field goal % | 53.1 | 45.9 |
| 3-point % | 39.0 | 28.9 |
| Free throw % | 83.7 | 82.8 |
Total stats
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Games | 80 | 59 |
| Points | 2,213 | 1,469 |
| Rebounds | 981 | 641 |
| Assists | 600 | 182 |
| Steals | 88 | 49 |
| Blocks | 70 | 102 |
| Turnovers | 256 | 218 |
| Minutes | 3,038 | 2,083 |
MORE: Why Joel Embiid is getting booed at the 2024 Paris Olympics
Nikola Jokic vs. Joel Embiid: Playoff advanced stats
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Player Efficiency Rating | 29.2 | 22.2 |
| Value Over Replacement | 9.8 | 3.2 |
| Box Plus/Minus | 10.8 | 4.1 |
| Win Shares | 15.2 | 6.1 |
| True Shooting % | 61.6 | 58.0 |
| Usage % | 30.3 | 31.6 |
Nikola Jokic vs. Joel Embiid: Accolades and awards
Jokic has the edge where it matters most, holding a championship and Finals MVP over Embiid. He also has won two more league MVP awards than Embiid as he holds a 3-1 edge in that department.
Jokic has one more All-NBA selection than Embiid and has four First-Team selections to Embiid's one.
Embiid's defensive prowess is evidenced by his 3-0 edge in All-Defensive Team selections, and Embiid has earned one more All-Star selection than Jokic. Embiid has won two scoring titles while Jokic's highest finish is sixth place in 2021-22.
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Championships | 1 | 0 |
| Finals MVPs | 1 | 0 |
| League MVPs | 3 | 1 |
| All-NBA | 6 (4x 1st Team) | 5 (1x First Team) |
| All-Defense | 0 | 3 |
| All-Star | 6 | 7 |
| Scoring titles | 0 | 2 |
Nikola Jokic vs. Joel Embiid head-to-head
Jokic has the edge in most categories but Embiid has won six of the eight head-to-head battles between the two.
There's no questioning the fact that Embiid looks to make a statement in these matchups — the last time they met, Embiid finished with 41 points, 10 assists and seven rebounds in a close win. In the meeting before, Embiid scored 47 points, pulled down 18 rebounds and dished out five assists in a win over Denver.
| Jokic | Embiid | |
| Record | 2-6 | 6-2 |
| Points per game | 22.3 | 27.6 |
| Rebounds per game | 10.1 | 11.3 |
| Assists per game | 6.9 | 4.4 |
| Steals per game | 1.1 | 1.3 |
| Blocks per game | 1.1 | 2.0 |
| Turnovers per game | 3.4 | 4.9 |
| Field goal % | 51.5 | 47.3 |
| 3-point % | 29.6 | 38.2 |
| Free throw % | 82.9 | 81.5 |
