Sixers rookies Jared McCain and Adem Bona team up with community outreach programs

The Sixers officially tip off the season on Wednesday, but some of the team’s newest members are already recording assists.

Jared McCain and Adem Bona, the Sixers’ 2024 draft picks, are trying to make a difference in Philly ahead of their rookie season as part of the team’s Assists for Safe Communities partnership. The Sixers and Penn Medicine are collaborating with six organizations committed to violence prevention — Young Chances Foundation, New Leash on Life, Power of Paint, Center for Family Services-Cure4Camden, Shoot Basketballs NOT People, and ACHIEVEability.

Bona will collaborate with Young Chances Foundation, while McCain connects with Power of Paint.

“Growing up, to be honest, I really didn’t have a mentor,” said Bona, who was born in Lagos, Nigeria. “Most of my mentorship was from the TV, watching other people, watching great basketball players and soccer players. Growing up, this was the hole I was missing in my childhood. Now, I have the opportunity to cover that hole for other kids. I will take that gladly. To be able to do that, that’s huge for me.”

McCain said he was drawn to Power of Paint because of how important mental health has been for him in his basketball career. He regularly journals and uses drawing therapy, and he wants more kids to have that opportunity.

“Everything I’ve done on the court, it wouldn’t have been done if my mind wasn’t right,” McCain said. “I’m not the strongest. I’m not the fastest, most athletic, definitely not the most athletic, but I win the mental battle. It’s a tough battle because there’s so many opinions. With social media, everyone’s going to have something to say. Doing journaling, doing meditation, that has made me the best basketball player I can be.”

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The team will donate $76 for every assist the Sixers tally this year to the partner organizations, and Sixers players will visit the organizations and Penn Medicine hospitals. The players will visit the children the organizations support and host them at a future Sixers game. All six organizations will be honored on Nov. 12 at the Wells Fargo Center ahead of the team’s game against the New York Knicks.

“Now, [Philadelphia] is my home,” said McCain, who grew up in California. “I want to do stuff that I would have wanted when I was a kid. This is so cool to have a Sixer player, an NBA player, doing something I want to do in life, come and speak to me about something that may be bothering me, or something I need help with.

“That’s something I would have loved. That’s why I do a lot of things, social media, YouTube, because I want to give people insight into my life that I think I would have loved when I was a kid.”

The Sixers open their season Wednesday night against the Milwaukee Bucks at the Wells Fargo Center. Join Keith Pompey and Gina Mizell at 3 p.m. on inquirer.com/gamedaycentral as they preview the game, and the season ahead.