After a quite quiet outing in opposition to the Detroit Pistons this weekend, Philadelphia 76ers rookie Jared McCain has returned to type of late. He dropped 17 factors off the bench in opposition to the Hornets on Tuesday and took it up a notch in opposition to the Orlando Magic the next night time.
Since that is the rematch of a back-to-back, the Sixers dominated out Paul George getting back from harm on Wednesday. This left Nick Nurse with an open spot in his beginning lineup, which ended up going to McCain.
Much like what he has carried out all 12 months, McCain took full benefit of his alternative to start out in opposition to the Magic. He ended up scoring a team-high 24 factors on environment friendly 10-of-17 taking pictures from the sphere. Regardless of the younger guard’s efforts, the Sixers ended up dropping to the Magic with a ultimate rating of 106-102.
the kid has enjoyable with it! pic.twitter.com/XA3RE90ZWP
– Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) December 5, 2024
Together with his outing in opposition to the Magic, McCain now has eight 20-point outings to his credit score as a rookie. Not solely is that by far essentially the most first-year gamers, nevertheless it places him in spectacular firm in franchise historical past. That is essentially the most 20-point video games the Sixers have had in opposition to a rookie since Ben Simmons in 2018.
.@J_mccain_24 is at 21 factors (9-12 FG, 2-3 3FG) in the course of the first 3 quarters of the match. That is his eighth recreation with greater than 20 factors this season, twice as many because the others. @NBA newbie.
McCain’s eight such performs are essentially the most by far @sixers newbie since @BenSimmons25 had 20 in 17-18.
h/t @Stathead
– Sixers Stats (@SixersStats) December 5, 2024
Now within the second month of the season, McCain nonetheless seems like the most effective rookies within the league. With every new environment friendly scoring efficiency, he continues to construct a robust case to be within the Rookie of the 12 months dialog.
What has been most spectacular about McCain is his skill to adapt on the fly. Though his position adjustments nearly each night time, he at all times finds methods to influence the sport. This has been an enormous increase for the Sixers, who want further manufacturing from the position gamers. assist with their stars on the sidelines.
The Sixers will get pleasure from a short break on Thursday earlier than selecting issues up once more with the Magic on Friday night time.
