76ers Players Confident Jared McCain is ‘Fine’ After Injury Scare

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Late in the fourth quarter against the Brooklyn Nets, Jared McCain took a hard fall. The Philadelphia 76ers couldn’t get up initially. Struggling to catch his breath, McCain received attention from the medical staff.
Considering it was so late in the game already, McCain was bound to miss the rest of the action. When he was helped up off the court and assisted on his walk back to the locker room, McCain was eventually taken to the hospital.
The young guard needed to be further evaluated and would get checked on for a possible concussion, according to a team official.
Another hard fall this game... this time, it's Sixers' rookie Jared McCain, who came down hard on his back.
— Erin Grugan (@eringrugan) October 17, 2024
McCain was able to walk off the court leaning on medical staff but looked extremely uncomfortable doing so. pic.twitter.com/YrEUHQZOei
For Nick Nurse, the scene was tough to see.
“It was rough,” said the Sixers’ head coach. “Got the report, he’s going to the hospital to get checked out. Obviously he was having some trouble breathing there but maybe got the wind knocked out of him but not sure what was going on there. Never quite seen one like that before. So, let’s hope he’s okay and see what the report is from the hospital.”
As for the veteran forward Kelly Oubre, he believes his teammate will be good.

"He's fine," Oubre “stated. “It was very scary. He caught himself, luckily. He didn't fall flat on his back. He's gonna feel it tomorrow. That's kinda what we were telling him. He's just gotta kinda take it easy and make sure he's 100 percent for opening night."
The reserve guard, Jeff Dowtin, viewed the situation the same as Oubre.
“That's our brother. That's our teammate,” Dowtin added. “I think everything's going to be fine. You know, we're praying for him, obviously. He's a warrior. A tough, hard-nosed player. Things are going to be OK. We're just wishing him the best right now."
The Sixers will update McCain’s status when they know more. On Friday, the 76ers will compete against the Orlando Magic, a matchup that marks the preseason finale for Philadelphia. Right now, McCain’s status to play is unclear. If he can’t get cleared for Friday’s game, all eyes will be on the Sixers’ injury report for next Wednesday’s opener against the Milwaukee Bucks.
Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s Philadelphia 76ers On SI Network. 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 Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia Threads: @JGrassoMedia
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