76ers send former promising prospect Jared McCain to Thunder for four draft picks, AP source says
The 21-year-old McCain was considered a bright piece of the Sixers’ future after they made him the 16th overall pick in the 2024 draft
WELCOME BACK TO THE SHOW. BRYAN KEATING HANNAH HOOVER. SO, HANNAH, WE’VE KNOWN FOR THE LAST COUPLE OF WEEKS THAT SHAY GILGEOUS ALEXANDER WAS GOING TO BE AN ALL STAR. SURPRISE, SURPRISE SURPRISE SURPRISE. WE SAW THAT ONE. YEAH. NO NO QUESTION ABOUT THAT. BUT TONIGHT IT WAS ANNOUNCED THAT CHET HOLMGREN WILL BE JOINING HIM FOR THE ALL STAR GAME AS AN ALL STAR RESERVE. I THINK THIS IS REALLY COOL. CHET HOLMGREN GOING TO BE AN ALL STAR FOR THE FIRST TIME IN HIS CAREER. HE’S HAD A SPECIAL KIND OF A SEASON THUS FAR. WHEN YOU THINK ABOUT ALL THE INJURIES. THE ONE CONSTANT HAS BEEN SHAY. BUT THEN RIGHT BESIDE HIM, CHET HOLMGREN HAS BEEN THERE TO TO PICK UP THE SLACK. SO HE’S GOING TO BE AN ALL STAR RESERVE. HE’S THE NINTH ALL STAR IN THUNDER HISTORY. WHEN YOU GO BACK TO THE NINTH ALL STAR IN THUNDER HISTORY, WHICH IS A BUNCH CONSIDERING THAT THEY JUST GOT HERE IN 2000 AND EIGHT TO HAVE NINE DIFFERENT ALL STARS IN LESS THAN 20 YEARS, I THINK IS SPECIAL, AND IT SHOWS YOU THE JOB THAT SAM PRESTI HAS DONE. THOSE WERE THE ALL STARS JOINING ON THE WESTERN CONFERENCE, BUT I DON’T KNOW IF THIS IS A PRIZE FOR YOU THAT CHET’S AN ALL STAR BUT WELL DESERVED STUFF. WELL DESERVED FOR SURE. I’M GOING TO GO BACK TO LAST SEASON. FROM BED REST TO NBA ALL STAR IS VERY IMPRESSIVE TO ME. I TALKED TO HIM AT THE BEGINNING OF THE SEASON, HE SAID. NO ONE REALLY REALIZES HOW BAD MY PELVIC INJURY WAS, AND SO FOR HIM TO MAKE THIS COMEBACK, TO BE IN THE PLAYOFFS AND TO WIN AN NBA CHAMPIONSHIP, I MEAN, IT’S JUST SUPER IMPRESSIVE IN AND OF ITSELF. AND I JUST HE JUST KEEPS CHASING FOR MORE IS WHAT I SEE. I FEEL LIKE THIS SEASON YOU MENTIONED IS ONE OF HIS BEST. HE’S HE’S PLAYED REALLY GREAT. HE AVERAGES 18 POINTS A GAME WITH NINE REBOUNDS ON THE SEASON. SO ANYWAY, I THINK IT’S JUST GREAT TO SEE A GUY WHO COMES BACK AND HAVE A LOT OF SUCCESS, AND I’M EXCITED FOR HOLMGREN, THE BIG GUY, AND THAT’S A GREAT POINT BECAUSE YOU GO BACK LESS THAN A CALENDAR YEAR, LESS THAN 12 MONTHS AGO WHEN HE GETS KNOCKED OVER, FALLS ON HIS HIP, HAS THE JUST PAINFUL, GRUELING INJURY TO HIS PELVIC BONE TO COME BACK AND PLAY AS WELL AS HE DID IN THE PLAYOFFS, HAVE A RECORD SETTING GAME SEVEN AS FAR AS BLOCKS GO IN THE NBA FINALS, WIN A CHAMPIONSHIP, SHOW UP AGAIN. I BELIEVE THE HYPE ON CHET HOLMGREN AND WHEN THEY DRAFTED HE MISSED HIS ENTIRE ROOKIE SEASON BECAUSE OF THE INJURY TO HIS FOOT, CAME BACK, PLAYED 82 GAMES. HE IS A GUY THAT HAS GOTTEN BETTER AND BETTER AND BETTER. HE IS ONE OF THE ABSOLUTE BEST DEFENSIVE PLAYERS IN THE LEAGUE. NOT MANY GUYS PLAY DEFENSE BETTER THAN HE DOES. HE’S A RIM PROTECTOR, AS GOOD AS ANYONE IN THE NBA, AND I THINK IT’S JUST WELL DESERVED. I THINK HE IS A GUY THAT’S DONE EVERYTHING RIGHT, SAYS ALL THE RIGHT THINGS, PLAYS REALLY HARD, DOESN’T COMPLAIN. VERY DESERVING TO BE AN ALL STAR. THIS HE’S GONNA KEEP GOING AND HE’S JUST GETTING BETTER. HE’S 23 YEARS OLD WHEN HIS OFFENSIVE GAME CONTINUES TO GET BETTER, THIS TEAM IS GOING TO BE BETTER AND BETTER. I JUST HE IS A SPECIAL KIND OF AN ATHLETE WHO HAS HAD TO OVERCOME A
By Dan Gelston, Associated Press
76ers send former promising prospect Jared McCain to Thunder for four draft picks, AP source says
The 21-year-old McCain was considered a bright piece of the Sixers’ future after they made him the 16th overall pick in the 2024 draft
Updated: 3:00 PM CST Feb 4, 2026
By Dan Gelston, Associated Press
The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder have acquired Jared McCain from the Philadelphia 76ers for a 2026 Houston Rockets first-round draft pick and three second-round picks, a person with knowledge of the trade said Wednesday. | RELATED VIDEO ABOVE | Crashing the Boards: Thunder’s Chet Holmgren named to All-Star teamThe Sixers will receive the most-favorable second-round pick in 2027 from Oklahoma City, Houston, Indiana or Miami; one from Milwaukee in 2028 and another from the Thunder in 2028, said the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade has not yet been made official. The 21-year-old McCain was considered a bright piece of the Sixers’ future after they made him the 16th overall pick in the 2024 draft.But McCain averaged only 6.6 points in 37 games this season. He goes to a Thunder team reeling from the loss of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to an abdominal strain expected to sideline him until after the All-Star break. McCain was off to a fantastic start last season in his brief career before he suffered a meniscus tear in his left knee during a December game against Indiana. McCain had averaged 15.3 points in 23 games for a Sixers team that entered last season with championship aspirations before injuries sunk them into the draft lottery. He started eight games and was an instant fan favorite out of Duke in large part after amassing millions of followers as a TikTok sensation.McCain earned Eastern Conference rookie of the month honors for November.He struggled to regain his place in the rotation as the Sixers returned to playoff contention behind No. 3 overall pick VJ Edgecombe.
The defending champion Oklahoma City Thunder have acquired Jared McCain from the Philadelphia 76ers for a 2026 Houston Rockets first-round draft pick and three second-round picks, a person with knowledge of the trade said Wednesday.
| RELATED VIDEO ABOVE | Crashing the Boards: Thunder’s Chet Holmgren named to All-Star team
The Sixers will receive the most-favorable second-round pick in 2027 from Oklahoma City, Houston, Indiana or Miami; one from Milwaukee in 2028 and another from the Thunder in 2028, said the person who spoke to The Associated Press on condition of anonymity because the trade has not yet been made official.
The 21-year-old McCain was considered a bright piece of the Sixers’ future after they made him the 16th overall pick in the 2024 draft.
But McCain averaged only 6.6 points in 37 games this season. He goes to a Thunder team reeling from the loss of Shai Gilgeous-Alexander to an abdominal strain expected to sideline him until after the All-Star break.
McCain was off to a fantastic start last season in his brief career before he suffered a meniscus tear in his left knee during a December game against Indiana.
McCain had averaged 15.3 points in 23 games for a Sixers team that entered last season with championship aspirations before injuries sunk them into the draft lottery. He started eight games and was an instant fan favorite out of Duke in large part after amassing millions of followers as a TikTok sensation.
McCain earned Eastern Conference rookie of the month honors for November.
He struggled to regain his place in the rotation as the Sixers returned to playoff contention behind No. 3 overall pick VJ Edgecombe.