Exactly two weeks before erupting for 34 points and 10 assists against the 12-0 Cleveland Cavaliers — nearly leading a Sixers team missing 19 All-Star appearances worth of talent to a massive upset victory — rookie Jared McCain made a comment that is a bit ironic in retrospect.
Asked about leveraging his jump-shooting ability to create driving lane, McCain said, "I think for a lot of people, on the [scouting report], it's going to say 'shooter' for sure — if they even have me on the scout."
Two weeks later, McCain sat in the very same seat and fielded questions about the best team in the NBA sending every coverage in the book at a rookie in hopes of slowing him down — and failing.
"It was pretty cool," McCain said. "When you notice it, like, wow. I'm in an NBA game, and they're definitely playing me. They're not helping off of me. It's pretty cool to notice that."
Sixers head coach Nick Nurse — someone who has never been afraid to throw the book at a star player — understands what this all means.
"They even threw for one possession a box-and-one in there, which was pretty interesting," Nurse said. "I was thinking, 'Man, that's pretty high-level respect playing that on a rookie.' But he had it going."
Indeed he did. McCain is known for his prowess from beyond the arc, and he knocked down six triples on 13 attempts on Wednesday night.
"I feel like I'm finding my shot," McCain said. "Obviously, shooting the three right."
All six of Jared McCain's made threes vs. the Cleveland Cavaliers: pic.twitter.com/ocPJV3o546
— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 14, 2024
But right now, McCain is relying on much more than a reliable shooting stroke as he tries to leave his mark. McCain's in-between game has become a real strength; his ability to carve out space in his preferred spots in the mid-range area is extremely impressive, as is his touch on those shots. His finishing at the rim remains a work in progress as he continues to acclimate to NBA speed and physicality, but he has compensated by thriving everywhere else.
"It was tough getting to the rim early," McCain said. "So just finding the mid-range, I think that's going to be my bread and butter, just getting a bump off using my lower body."
MORE: Cavaliers 114, Sixers 106
McCain's 34 points were not what Nurse wanted to talk about after the game, though.
"Probably the biggest thing was the 10 assists for me," Nurse said. "I know 34 is a huge number, but he's mostly been doing all kind of one way. And now that you're starting to create, they're going to send more people… I thought he did a good job for the most part of getting it out to other people to create some buckets, and that's pretty fast learning… That was the most encouraging."
Jared McCain's season-high in assists during 36 games at Duke last season was five.
In his 11th NBA game and first NBA start, he collected 10 assists alongside 34 points. Here is each one of those assists: pic.twitter.com/2pZNu711RT— Adam Aaronson's clips (@SixersAdamClips) November 14, 2024
McCain, whose assist numbers in college were notably low — often used as a knock against him in draft evaluations — gave tremendous insight into how his decision-making process has already evolved.
"Instead of reading my defender, I'm reading the back-side defender, or not even reading the first help-side, I'm reading the second on the back-side, seeing if the big is pulling over, seeing if the help is crashing down to the baseline person or lift up to the wing and I can hit the wing when I'm driving baseline," McCain said. "Just reading defenses, I think it's going to come with time and watching film."
Looking back at McCain's showing at NBA Summer League in July is informative. His process was not much different, but he could not buy a bucket for games at a time. The output looked ugly, but the input was solid. McCain has very clearly spent years meticulously evaluating his strengths and how to magnify them, as well as his weaknesses and how to overcome them. His self-awareness on the floor is perhaps just as valuable as his immense confidence.
For example, a long-range sniper of McCain's caliber should seek out every opportunity to free themself up for a chance to fire away from deep. And so, after missing a tough layup on a right-handed drive, McCain immediately takes notice that the left corner has been vacated. Before anyone else realizes, he darts in that direction. Many of the league's most accomplished three-point shooters fail to master relocation at the level McCain already appears to have already grasped it:
I cannot stress enough how smart and well-executed this relocation is from Jared McCain to set up a corner three. This is 10-year veteran stuff and he's doing it three weeks into his NBA career. pic.twitter.com/m6bVZFVKC4
— Adam Aaronson (@SixersAdam) November 14, 2024
Fellow Sixers rookie Adem Bona saw the first extended action of his NBA career on Wednesday, and Bona said after the game that the blossoming of his draft classmate has been inspirational to him.
"He's doing an amazing job doing what he's doing right now," Bona said. I think that's really amazing. That kind of gave me confidence. We both started this journey together, and it kind of gave me a little boost that I can also contribute and help the team."
As it often does, McCain's face lit up when he was asked about Bona, who grabbed nine rebounds in 17 minutes.
"It's super cool just to be with him," McCain said. "It's cool to just go out there and play as hard as [you] can with somebody who you admire, who you take as a friend — family."
MORE: McCain and Bona's bond
Naturally, McCain understands the bigger picture: the Sixers have to win games. "You want to play well, but you also want to win every time," he said. But the reality is that the rookie has made the absolute best out of enormously difficult circumstances, and given the Sixers hope that they may have another high-level contributor on board once the rest of the team is healthy.
McCain spent much of his media availability explaining the importance of visualization in his life. He said he had "not quite" visualized being a full-time starter as a rookie yet. But the time might be coming.
"I think he's certainly played his way right into the whole mix, for sure," Nurse said. "Obviously, he responded well to his first start. He's got to be a candidate playing this well to get into that lineup."
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