The Oklahoma City Thunder were one of the biggest winners of the trade deadline, and based on Jared McCain’s latest performance, they just keep winning even more. He’s been an incredible fit for OKC, acting as a perfect bench scoring piece for them, especially with all of the injuries they’ve been dealing with.
OKC shipped out their 2026 first-round pick, a 2027 second, and two second-rounders in 2028 in exchange for McCain. The Philadelphia 76ers hadn’t been playing McCain a ton, so they decided to sell him at the deadline. But based on the way McCain has performed since getting to OKC, that may have been a big mistake for the Sixers.
Because McCain looks absolutely incredible.
Jared McCain keeps proving that the Thunder won the trade
On Wednesday night, McCain had one of his best games yet as a member of the Thunder. He looked great off the bench, and the Thunder picked up a big-time win over the… Brooklyn Nets.
Sure, it was only the Nets, but that doesn’t change how efficient McCain was. He gave the Thunder exactly what they needed, adding a great scoring punch to the game.
Against the Nets, McCain played 28:30, which were the second-most minutes of any player on OKC (behind only Aaron Wiggins). It also marked the second-most minutes he’s played in a game for OKC so far this season.
By the end of the night, McCain had totaled 26 points, three rebounds, two assists, and two blocks while shooting an impressive 9-of-16 from the floor, 5-of-9 from beyond the three-point line, and 3-of-4 from the charity stripe.
Since joining the Thunder, McCain had enjoyed a few games of this caliber. He’s been a constant scoring threat for the Thunder to deploy off the bench behind Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
And his three-point shooting, in particular, has been crucial for OKC, even though a lot of his biggest games of the year have been against tanking teams.
Still, McCain’s scoring has gone to another level since leaving Philadelphia, with whom he was barely playing. The Sixers even sent him to the G League at one point.
So far this regular season, McCain has tallied five 20-point games. However, four of them have come during his time with the Thunder, even though he’s played in 37 games for the Sixers and just 18 with the Thunder.
It’s no secret that McCain has been great in OKC, but his game against the Nets on Wednesday just further proves that the Thunder won the trade.