With the addition of Paul George in the offseason, the Philadelphia 76ers will be pushing hard to finally overcome a long stretch of playoff stagnation after being eliminated in the Eastern Conference Semifinals — a recurring theme since 2017-18 and the Ben Simmons era.
One player who is part of this adventure brings a new sense of personality to the 76ers. Jared McCain, the Duke Blue Devil selected 16th overall by Philadelphia in this year’s draft, is going to be a catalyst for the 76ers this season and could be a major asset to the reserve unit.
He will bring plenty of outside shooting, smart play and solid positional defense to his 6’3″, 200 lbs. McCain appears to be a great fit for the current roster and should see significant playing time early on.
Their first matchup against the Milwaukee Bucks, a team that has worn Philadelphia’s number in recent years, will be an interesting one to watch in the season opener, and it will also be interesting to see if McCain gets much time on the court. The 76ers’ guard lineup certainly has depth, with Tyrese Maxey, Kelly Oubre Jr., Kyle Lowry and Eric Gordon, so seeing McCain come in as part of a rotation to test the court could be viable. In the first matchup against a conference opponent, however, it wouldn’t be surprising if Nick Nurse came out swinging and kept his lineup pretty tight.
But by acting as if McCain is guaranteed to get impactful playing time on opening night, he should be able to show promise in his role on a 76ers team trying to step up in the 2024-25 season.
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