For Jared McCain, Philly and the Sixers will always feel like a ‘first love’
McCain totaled 13 points in his first game back in Philly since being dealt to the defending-champion Oklahoma City Thunder at last month's trade deadline.
Jared McCain spent his Monday morning meditation session accepting that the ensuing hours would be filled with a variety of emotions.
Anxiety. Excitement. Pressure. And, yes, a subtle desire to prove the 76ers wrong.
So McCain allowed those emotions to spill out when the Sixer-turned-Thunder guard drained two three-pointers the first two times he touched the ball. The first came while moving into the left corner, prompting him to playfully put three fingers in Andre Drummond’s face in celebration. The second came after taking a bounce pass and firing from the top of the key, then turning around to yell some choice words.
McCain’s first game back in Philly since being traded to the defending champions in early February — when he totaled 13 points and two assists in Oklahoma City’s 123-103 victory, its 12th in a row — did not exactly bring closure, he said. Every future return to this city and arena might still feel “really weird,” he acknowledged.
» READ MORE: VJ Edgecombe shines and other things we learned in the Sixers’ 123-103 loss to the Thunder
Yet that stems from his appreciation for the place — and the people — that launched McCain’s NBA career. The triumphs of exploding onto the scene as an early Rookie of the Year frontrunner in 2024. The adversity of rehabbing from meniscus and thumb surgeries, which abruptly derailed that terrific debut season and kept him sidelined for nearly 11 months. And the “passionate love” he felt inside and outside the organization, which resurfaced during Monday’s reunion.
“I really just am grateful for it,” McCain said after the game. “I come back to that word a lot. But when I first got drafted, I [came] in and [tried] to put out good energy and learn as much as possible. … It’s a great feeling to have, to know that you can have that effect no matter what it is.
“So I try to bring that everywhere I go.”
That weirdness for McCain immediately arrived when the Thunder landed in Philly, and he was transported to the team hotel instead of his former suburban home. The next morning, a slew of television cameras waited as McCain emerged from the visitors’ locker room for Oklahoma City’s shootaround, prompting him to wave on his way to the court. As he faced a media scrum for questions, reigning NBA Most Valuable Player Shai Gilgeous-Alexander lingered behind to observe the scene.
McCain recounted the initial shock and confusion of receiving the phone call that he had been traded while in the middle of a Sixers Western Conference road trip. He emphasized that he feels no ill will toward the organization that gave him the “greatest day of my life,” when he was drafted 16th overall in 2024. When he rattled off the teammates, coaches, and medical staffers who helped him through his early NBA career — including his injury recovery and on-court struggles early this season — he needed to stop himself because he was “trying not to get too emotional.”
“Very thankful for the Sixers for allowing me to be who I am,” McCain said.
The 22-year-old sharpshooter also acknowledged some initial trepidation — “Why do you want me?” he thought to himself — about joining the reigning champions. The Thunder already boast a stacked and dynamic young roster.
Yet Thunder coach Mark Daigneault fondly remembers speaking to McCain during the pre-draft process, and knew he was a player that Sam Presti, the team’s executive vice president and general manager, “liked a lot back then.” Though McCain’s 5.2 million TikTok followers extends his celebrity far beyond basketball fans, Oklahoma City’s decision-makers recognized that, behind closed doors, McCain is a gym rat and craftsman, Daigneault said.
“Our locker room is one that you kind of have to be those things to be in the club,” Daigneault said, “and if you do those things, the guys are unbelievable. … We knew [McCain] had the right stuff, and he exhibited that in Philly, as well.”
That environment has facilitated a seamless transition for McCain. Like Alex Caruso, Isaiah Hartenstein, and Ajay Mitchell before him, Daigneault said that McCain has been able to “thread the needle very nicely” by respecting what the Thunder has already accomplished while also exuding the confidence to add his imprint. The coaching staff did not initially overload McCain with schematics on either end of the floor, the guard added, instead “letting me go play, and see what happens.”
The results: McCain entered Monday averaging 12.3 points on 44% shooting from three-point range in 18 games. He has effortlessly flowed into opportunities to relocate on the floor for open shots, and has used screens and dribble-handoffs to his advantage. It all makes it feel as if McCain has been with the Thunder for much longer than six-plus weeks, Daigneault said.
McCain’s demeanor that star Jalen Williams described as “bubbly” also fits naturally with a team that, while racking up a 57-15 record, has created a postgame bit of stacking towels on the shoulders and head of television sideline reporter Nick Gallo.
“When you’re a really good person,” Williams said of McCain, “wherever you go, you can infect the team with your energy. He does a good job of that. And I think we’re also a fun team to be around, as well. I think he gets a lot of confidence to be himself.”
Still, when McCain walked on to the Xfinity Mobile Arena court for Monday’s pregame shooting session, his mind briefly believed he was a Sixer again.
He made the rounds to greet veteran guard Kyle Lowry and assistant coach Rico Hines sitting courtside, then to staffers working in the back hallways that connect both locker rooms. About an hour before tipoff, McCain reconvened with former teammates Adem Bona, Justin Edwards, and Johni Broome for pregame chapel, a ritual that he once spearheaded with his young Sixers “crew.”
When McCain entered the game out of a timeout about midway through the first quarter, he received a rousing ovation from the home crowd. He went through a scoring drought after those initial deep shots, but converted a fingerroll layup and corner three-pointer in the fourth quarter that squashed any hope of a final Sixers push. Following the game, Daigneault praised McCain (and fellow former Sixer Isaiah Joe) for playing “in character” under the unique circumstances.
“At the end of the day, I just wanted to win,” McCain added. “Of course I wanted to beat the Sixers. Of course.”
After the final buzzer, McCain shared a midcourt chat with Sixers rookie VJ Edgecombe, who later said that, “If you don’t bond with Jared, then something might be wrong with you.” McCain then popped into Williams’ postgame television interview. A barrage of autograph-seekers lining the tunnel — several holding No. 20 Sixers jerseys — delayed McCain’s walk off the court and back into the visitors’ locker room.
During his postgame press conference, McCain said he will miss the restaurants here such as Double Knot, where he spent his Sunday night with family and friends. And his home that, with no time to say goodbye, others needed to pack up for him following the trade. And the people inside and outside the organization.
That’s why McCain accepted Monday morning that, at some point, the emotions would spill out of him. Because Philly will always be the place that launched his NBA career.
“It’s like the first love,” McCain said. “So now, it’s a breakup. … But now, looking back on it, everything happens for a reason.”