NBA Makes Major Announcement for Philadelphia 76ers Rookie

Jared McCain is an NBA Rising Star.
Dec 4, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Jared McCain (20) dribbles past Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black (0) during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Dec 4, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Jared McCain (20) dribbles past Orlando Magic guard Anthony Black (0) during the fourth quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images / Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
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The 2024-2025 NBA season might be over for Philadelphia 76ers rookie Jared McCain, but an accolade recently rolled in for the former Duke star.

On Tuesday, the NBA announced the player pool for the 2025 Rising Stars games. After a strong first season in Philadelphia, McCain was one of 10 rookies to be named a Rising Star in the game.

As expected, McCain will not be a part of the action next month as he continues recovering from a knee injury, which required surgery last month.

Heading into the 2024-2025 NBA season, the Sixers didn’t plan to have McCain in the rotation initially.

Coming out of college as a freshman into the draft, McCain saw the court for just six minutes in his first two games. Philly head coach Nick Nurse even kicked around the idea of having McCain potentially pick up some minutes in the NBA G League throughout the year.

The Sixers quickly found out that wouldn’t be necessary. Not only did McCain prove he was valuable depth, but he ended up being a key player in the rotation as the Sixers battled through injuries early on.

Once McCain had gained a stretch of seeing the court for 30-plus minutes, it was clear he belonged.

In the 16 games leading up to his injury, McCain averaged 19 points while shooting 46 percent from the field and 40 percent from three on nearly eight attempts per game.

Along with his scoring, McCain produced three assists and three rebounds per game.

Before going out with a lateral meniscus tear in mid-December, McCain was recognized as the NBA’s Rookie of the Year favorite. Since he won’t reach the 65-game minimum, McCain won’t be winning the award. However, getting a Rising Stars nod is still an impressive accomplishment after only playing in 23 games.

Along with McCain, the NBA named Bub Carrington, Stephon Castle, Tristan da Silva, Zach Edey, Dalton Knecht, Yves Missi, Zaccharie Risacher, Alex Sarr, and Jaylen Wells as the other recipients.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Title: Credentialed writer/reporter covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation Email: JustinGrasso32@Gmail.com Location: Philadelphia, PA Expertise: Reporting, insight, and analysis on the Sixers and the NBA  Justin Grasso is a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s FanNation.  Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writer’s Association.  Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoNBA