The Philadelphia 76ers gunned for an NBA championship last year, adding Paul George in free agency to pair with Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey, but instead, they ended up being one of the worst teams in basketball.
Embiid played just 19 games, George ended up undergoing knee surgery, Maxey’s efficiency left much to be desired and the rest of the roster was simply not up to snuff. Well, maybe other than Jared McCain, who finished seventh in Rookie of the Year voting in spite of playing in just 23 contests.
McCain averaged 15.3 points per game on 46.0/38.3/87.5 shooting splits during the 2024-25 campaign. He isn’t the greatest defender in the world, and his lack of size (6-foot-2, 195 pounds) is fairly concerning, but can he represent a potential piece for the 76ers to build around? Absolutely.
That’s what makes Bleacher Report’s Zach Buckley dubbing McCain the top trade asset in the NBA right now that much more confusing, especially given the current state of Philadelphia. But apparently, Buckley does not feel like the Sixers are resigned to being a losing team and may want to add another star-level piece to put alongside of Embiid and George.
“If you believe this current core’s injury issues are too great to overcome, then the idea of dealing a 21-year-old who packed as much high-end potential into a 23-game sample as McCain just did should be a non-starter,” Buckley wrote. “Philadelphia may not share that sentiment, though. Not when the healthy version of Joel Embiid remains an MVP challenger. Not when the healthy-ish version of this team should be good enough contend in the wide-open Eastern Conference.”
A couple of things here.
First of all, the word “healthy” is an oxymoron when used in any discussion regarding the 76ers these days. We know Embiid is going to miss time. We know George is older and injury-prone. And to be perfectly honest, neither player even looked all that good when they were actually on the floor last season.
Second, while the Eastern Conference may be wide open next season thanks to the Boston Celtics entering a soft rebuild (sans the injured Jayson Tatum) and the Indiana Pacers being without Tyrese Haliburton, does anyone actually believe Philly can contend with the Cleveland Cavaliers or the New York Knicks?
The 76ers have been down this road multiple times before where they attempt to fit square pegs into round holes. Tobias Harris. Al Horford. James Harden. George. It just hasn’t worked, and there really is no need for Philadelphia to try — and inevitably fail — again.
Heck, even the Jimmy Butler experiment didn’t work out, but that had more to do with Butler’s personal preferences than it did anything else. Still, though.
McCain is just 21 years old and flashed terrific offensive potential last season. The Sixers would be silly to trade him away for the fleeting chance of a championship next year.
