National Basketball Association

Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokić and Rudy Gobert prove there's still room for bigs in the NBA

Updated May. 30, 2021 3:34 p.m. ET

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The big men of the NBA are making a big statement so far in the playoffs.

While the sizzle of the 3-point shot doesn't seem to be going away anytime soon, the rumors of the fall of the NBA big man have been greatly exaggerated.

Look no further than a trio of centers ⁠— Joel Embiid, Nikola Jokić and Rudy Gobert ⁠— absolutely bossing the opposition thus far in the postseason.

Embiid has his Philadelphia 76ers in an enviable 3-0 series lead against the Washington Wizards, with an average margin of victory of 20.3 points so far.

Embiid dropped 30 points in Game 1, 22 in Game 2 and led all scorers with 36 points in Game 3.

And he's doing it with stellar efficiency, shooting 67.4% from the field.

After averaging 28.5 points, 10.6 rebounds and 2.8 assists in the regular season, he's averaging of 29.3 points, 7.0 rebounds and 2.7 assists in the playoffs ⁠— all while playing an average of just 28 minutes per game against the Wizards.

It's no wonder that the 27-year-old center was showered with chants of "MVP" from Sixers fans on the road Saturday night.

Speaking of … Jokić, the presumptive MVP, is also turning the screws in the Denver Nuggets' series against the Portland Trail Blazers.

Though that series is much more evenly matched and tied at 2-2, Jokić has proven to be a handful.

In his four games against the Blazers, Jokić is averaging a double-double with 31.0 points and 11.0 rebounds, along with 3.0 assists.

And while 3-point shooting isn't the traditional forte of big men, he's dropped in 10 of 22 from distance for a 45.5% success rate in four games. 

He's doing so against a center who is also proving he's more than capable of holding his own in Jusuf Nurkić. 

Jokić had an abysmal Game 4 by his standards, as the Blazers keyed in on him in a 115-95 rout.

Portland's defense simply would not let the 26-year-old center beat them, as he went 7-for-18 shooting for 16 points. However, off games are rare for Jokić, and he tends to come back with fury following a poor performance.

During the regular season, he had just three instances of back-to-back games where he finished with fewer than 20 points.

His two lowest-scoring performances of the season – both 12-point outings – were followed up with 22-point and 34-point outbursts. And his season-high of 50 points came after a 13-point performance.

Another big in the Western Conference is also making waves with the Utah Jazz.

While Donovan Mitchell's return is the obvious source of Utah taking a 2-1 series lead after losing Game 1 against the Memphis Grizzlies, Gobert has been an anchor for the West's No. 1 seed.

The 28-year-old Frenchman is following up a sensational regular season with an even better postseason, putting up 15.7 points, 14.0 rebounds and 3.7 blocks per game, all while shooting 87% from the field.

He tied a career high with an average of 13.5 rebounds per game in the regular season and led the league with a 67.5% field goal percentage.

And he's always a threat to deny a poster. Just ask Grizzlies star Ja Morant.

The performances of Embiid, Jokić and Gobert have served as a reminder to the league that there's still room for bigs to play in today's NBA.

While draining 3s and breaking ankles are en vogue, dominant centers can still be a lynchpin on teams with championship aspirations.

Just ask the two conferences' top seeds and the favorite for NBA MVP.

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National Basketball Association

LA Clippers

Philadelphia 76ers

Joel Embiid

Nikola Jokic

Rudy Gobert

Utah Jazz

Denver Nuggets