OKC Thunder Teammates Continue to Praise Jared McCain

The Oklahoma City Thunder acquired shooting guard Jared McCain during the NBA Trade Deadline last February. He was forced to uproot his life and enter a team that already built momentum, eventually going on to win over 60 games after winning a title together the year prior. This of course in the midst of his own career, where McCain went from a first round pick that played his way into the leader of the club house for the 2024-25 Rookie of the Year award before suffering a season ending injury. That rehab process was met with another injury in the offseason and left his 2025-26 season on shaky ground until the 76ers dealt the Duke product to Oklahoma City.

With the Thunder, things really took off. Not only did McCain produce at an impressive level but found himself needing to step up in the playoffs for the injury riddlied Bricktown Ballers. It was surely a whirlwind for the young guard but a chance he made the most of.

As the team gathers again for media day and training camp ahead of the 2026-27 season, all of the talk is about what McCain can bring over a full season. It started with Thunder general manager Sam Presti last Thursday.

"I think that's going to be a big difference for us. We're always really careful about making additions in season, and there is a very small collection of people -- I mean really small -- that I would have done that with at the trade deadline. He was one of them. He had the emotional intelligence, in my opinion, to walk into our environment and navigate that but also still play with confidence. I think that's a really unique thing," Presti said. "Again, those are things you just -- those are the rarities, I think, of high performers. One of the most underrated aspects of a player in the modern NBA, in my opinion, is their self-awareness as a player, not just as a person. But a self-aware player is essential to a mid-season acquisition or really any acquisition of a team that's been together for a while. Jared has that in an overflowing amount."

This week marks McCain's first training camp with the Oklahoma City Thunder. A chance to collect himself and instill himself into the system and team without the high paced play of the regular season and postseason.

"I think starting with everybody at a baseline, in training camp like this, is going to do him well because there's a lot more to him as a player than a guy that can come off and rip off a bunch of threes. I've watched him for a very long time, and he's a winning player, and he understands the things that drive winning, and intangibly non-statistically. I think he's a more balanced player than we got to see because he was trying to fit in with the current group," Presti detailed. "Now, as I said before, there's a lot of discovery to be done, so we'll just have to see what he looks like with this constellation of players. But he's absolutely improved, as have other guys on our team, Wallace and Mitchell and all down the line. All these guys have gotten better because they're in their formative years as players"

The praise didn't stop with the team's top executive, but carried into Monday's media day session where the Thunder head coach discussed the great impression McCain made on the team last year.

"I have high confidence in Jared. He made a great impression with his time last year. He's a great worker, as a lot of our guys are. Most of our guys are great workers, especially the guys that are returning rotation players. Their summers are impressive, top to bottom. They come back in shape, and they come back renewed and motivated, and they get themselves there, and he's in that category," Mark Daigneault said. "Being in a camp with us is going to be helpful for him. It's really hard to do what he did last year, and he did it about as well as anybody could have done it. But he'll benefit from starting with us at the beginning of the race."

A storyline everyone will be excited to see this year is a fully healthy Thunder club. Last year, no one got a glimpse of what this team can truly be with injuries not allowing McCain and Jalen Williams to share the floor a whole lot.

"We haven't had a lot of minutes logged in. He's just a really good player. Obviously you saw what he's done in the playoffs, which was dope. To be able to come into a new situation and play with as much confidence as he did is -- it gives you a lot to look forward to, and I definitely commend him for that.' Jalen Williams explained. "But yeah, I'm excited. Anytime you can shoot the ball and get your own shot off, it's always good. I'm a very willing passer, so I think we'll have a lot of good chemistry going throughout the year. Obviously the more you learn about players you're playing with, the better your team will be. It is exciting."

Even the superstar got in on the action to praise McCain.

"The rarity with JMac is like nothing will change for him. He, like -- the player and individual he is, like he just oozes confidence, whether he's playing five minutes a game, 35 minutes a game, like, you know what you're going to get from him. So I don't think much will change for him. I think he'll go out there, put the ball in the basket at a high level, do it in spots where we need him. He'll be a plus defender. He'll do whatever the team needs to win. He'll be a star in his role," Gilgeous-Alexander said. "I think with him, it's just the more opportunity, the more he'll show, and the better he'll get, the more reps he gets under his belt. And I don't think that will change. He's who he is, and we're lucky to have a guy like that."

As the Oklahoma City Thunder traded Isaiah Joe, who developed a great two-man game with Isaiah Hartenstein to generate half court 3 point shots at will, the hope should be McCain can step into that role playing off the passing big man. Hartenstein is excited about what that pairing can look like.

"I think he came in, gave us a big lift. He's a really confident player, and I think he just fit in right away." Hartenstein said "I'm really excited just to have him in training camp because, like you say, it's never easy to get traded, doesn't matter what kind of player you are. Just to come to a new team in the middle of the season and to try to find your way, find your role. So we're just really excited for him, what he brings, especially just shooting-wise, offensive confidence, and also off the court, just a great, great human being."

All eyes will be on McCain this season, a fan favorite in Bricktown despite only being in town for nine months.

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