Jared McCain on Leading Philadelphia 76ers in Scoring Early in Season: "It Truly Was a Blessing"

The Duke Blue Devils alum and 16th overall pick in the 2024 NBA Draft unexpectedly emerged as one of the Sixers’ lead scoring options at the start of the season. Due to mounting injuries to all three of their stars during the early portion of the season — Joel Embiid, Tyrese Maxey, and Paul George — the scoring void was filled by McCain, who averaged 19.1 points per game during the month of November.

McCain led the Sixers in scoring seven times in a nine-game stretch during the month of November. His scoring outbursts led to the rookie winning Eastern Conference Rookie of the Month honors in November.

"It truly was a blessing," says McCain in a one-on-one interview of having the opportunity to show off his scoring prowess. "Obviously you never want anyone to get hurt, but in the beginning, I think all three of them were hurt and out (Embiid, Maxey, and George). I was able to be like the primary ball handler and just learn how to be a point guard, a shooting guard, and that was really what I needed to get the opportunity."

Entering the month of December, McCain led all rookies with 16.1 points per game. In other words, he was the favorite to win Rookie of the Year in the early portion of the season. However, McCain suffered a season-ending torn meniscus injury in a Dec. 13 game against the Indiana Pacers.

"I just needed the platform and once I got it, I feel like I took advantage of it and now I feel like I was able to show what I can do in the NBA," says McCain. "I’m glad I was able to do that at least before I got injured."

From Struggles to Stardom

While McCain lit it up early in the NBA season, it wasn’t always that easy for the Duke alum. The 6-foot-3 guard struggled in Summer League action, especially in regard to his efficiency. McCain averaged 13.2 points per game while converting on just 28.2% of his field goal and 3-point attempts.

"I feel like I definitely had to go through a learning curve, whether it was training camp, Summer League, I think was huge for me," says McCain. "Didn’t play my best, but I feel like I just worked and I knew it was going to pay off at some point, whether that was early on or later in the season."

He quickly shed those early struggles against real NBA competition months later, converting on 46.0% of his field goal attempts and 38.3% of his 3-point attempts during the regular season prior to his injury.

"I knew once I got my opportunity, it was going to be exactly how I wanted it to go," says McCain. "I know I worked hard and so I was ready for the moment no matter what it was. I’m just ready to get back out there. It’s frustrating just being out there on the bench, but I can’t wait to get back out there — it happened for a reason."

Since suffering the injury in December, McCain has been attacking rehab hard. He says he does workouts three to four times a day and is now able to do some on-court stuff.

Learning from the Best

McCain says he’s been spending time watching some of his favorite stars, such as the Golden State Warriors’ Stephen Curry, play while he looks to make his full return to the court.

"I’m just trying to observe and I’ve watched a lot of workouts before games of some of my favorite players," says McCain. "Just trying to see how they do their routine. Steph Curry is my favorite player. Just to watch him, get to talk to him for a little bit and watch his routines and see what he does and really take note of it in a non-judgmental way."

Curry is considered the greatest 3-point shooter of all time. McCain details how he’s taking notes on how Curry takes his shots in an effort to improve his shooting touch.

"Just seeing how he observes his shots and he’s almost detached from the shots when he shoots, whether it’s a miss or a make," says McCain. "I’m just seeing the little things, the little details that may help me in my career and stuff that I’m going to use when I get back out there on the court."

Eyes on Year Two

McCain stresses how he wants to be a better point guard when he comes back for his second season. While McCain certainly showed off his scoring touch, he only averaged 2.6 assists to 1.6 turnovers per game.

"Becoming a true point guard is something that I want to learn — just controlling the game," says McCain. "Just learning how to be a point guard and then obviously defensively, I knew there was going to be a learning curve as a rookie. Just trying to understand defenses, understanding how to guard and understanding the refs too, and how they’re going to call certain people."

Although McCain only saw a brief amount of action with Maxey, he showed the ability to produce with the All-Star guard, posting 30 points in a November win over the Brooklyn Nets.

"I feel like it was great," McCain says of his chemistry with Maxey. "I feel like we didn’t play that many games together, but it felt nice to just have him out there, another ball handler, another person who takes a lot of the attention. I’m open when he gets double-teamed and it’s just easy to play with people like that."

The Sixers are obviously going through a rough season this year despite entering with high expectations. Philadelphia is currently 23-52, the third-worst record in the Eastern Conference. However, they’ll hope to right the ship next season with a healthy quartet featuring McCain, Maxey, Embiid, and George.

McCain appeared in just six games with Embiid and 13 games with George. As a quartet, they appeared in just three games together this season.

"The games I played with PG and Joel, they make it easy," says McCain. "I’m happy to get back out there with the chemistry we already have."

Photo by Emilee Chinn/Getty Images, Ezra Shaw/Getty Images, Mitchell Leff/Getty Images