Sixers Urging Jared McCain to Stay Aggressive Amidst Paul George's Suspension

Jared McCain has been a relative non-factor for most of his sophomore season. The Sixers can't afford to have that continue.

With Paul George suspended until late March, the Sixers can't just be the Tyrese Maxey and Joel Embiid show for the next two months. They'll need contributions up and down the roster to keep themselves in the Eastern Conference postseason picture.

Maxey identified McCain as one of the players who needs to step up most in George's absence.

"As soon as the news came out, I hit Jared, Justin [Edwards], Trendon [Watford]. 'Listen, y'all gotta be ready,' Maxey said when asked how the Sixers would adjust without George. I know Kelly [Oubre Jr.]'s gonna be ready. That's just who he is. But Jared, Justin, Trendon, those three guys haven't played in playoff basketball, and last year, we weren't good, so we didn't play meaningful basketball.

"Now it's at the All-Star break, going into All-Star break, wanna be playing the right way after the All-Star break, wanna be stepping in the right directions and wanna be looking toward getting in position for the postseason. So we need those guys to really step up and play good basketball for us."

McCain hasn't done much of that for the Sixers this year, to be blunt. Between the season-ending meniscus tear that he suffered last December and the UCL tear in his thumb which delayed his season debut this year, he's struggled to find a rhythm.

One week might not be enough to change that permanently, but his play over the past few games has been a genuine sign of progress.

Teammates urge McCain to stay aggressive

Starting with a 16-point night against the Charlotte Hornets on Monday, McCain averaged 12.3 points in only 19.8 minutes per game over the past week. He shot 56.3 percent overall and 59.1 percent from three-point range, both of which are obviously sustainable in a larger sample size.

While his shooting percentages are bound to regress to the mean, his teammates are focused on helping him control the aspect of his game that he always can control.

"I try to tell him to be aggressive, especially with screen-setting," Joel Embiid said after Saturday's 124-114 win over the New Orleans Pelicans. I'm trying to just set the best screens possible. I want him to come off with the intention of attacking and shooting the ball.

"He's been more confident lately, so just gotta keep going. The same mentality for everybody else. Just use me, attack and use that space."

Embiid has had plenty of success with two-man actions when paired with an elite shooter, from JJ Redick and Seth Curry in the past to Maxey these days. He expressed optimism that he and McCain could form a similar partnership, although he said "it's a learning experience for him" this early in his career.

Maxey echoed a similar message when asked about McCain.

"Honestly, I tell him, 'Listen, dude. If you come off [a screen] and they're not guarding you, shoot it. Like, that's what you do.' That's what we need him to do. I told him right before he sprints to the corner, like, 'Sprint to the corner. If I get the ball, I'm firing it to you and I want you to shoot it.' We need his shooting. We need that scoring punch that he brings."

During the 10-game stretch that he took over early in his rookie season, McCain averaged 23.4 points in 34.7 minutes per game. Although there were questions about how he and Maxey would fit defensively long-term, the offense upside appeared to outweigh those.

But now, between his injuries and the emergence of VJ Edgecombe, McCain's long-term place on the team is on far shakier ground than it was last year. Unless the Sixers ever plan to start three guards, McCain figures to top out as a high-end bench player in Philadelphia.

In George's absence, McCain has a chance to send a message both to the Sixers and the rest of the league. If he puts the slow start of his sophomore season behind him and emerges as a key contributor down the stretch, that could change the Sixers' ceiling this season.

"I'm just happy for him, man," Maxey said Saturday. "He has fought himself out of a little funk. And to do that is hard, man. It's really hard, especially when you don't play every night, the uncertainty of the roster, and sometimes you're winning. So it's just a weird spot to be in.

"But he's fought his way out. I see the confidence coming back into him. And we're gonna need that. We're gonna need that. Their two-man game is really good. It's gonna be hard for teams to defend. And it's just another layer that we can add to our offense."

Unless otherwise noted, all stats via NBA.com, PBPStats, Cleaning the Glass or Basketball Reference. All salary information via Spotrac and salary-cap information via RealGM.

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