The Philadelphia 76ers continue to face a mountain of injury woes, with Quentin Grimes joining Joel Embiid and Kelly Oubre Jr. on the mend on Tuesday night in their clash against the Washington Wizards. But at the very least, Jared McCain seems to be putting his injury battles in the rearview mirror. McCain, who saw his rookie season get cut short by a torn meniscus, is hitting his stride, putting up 14 points, three rebounds, and five assists in the 76ers' 121-102 victory against the Wizards.
McCain is being held on a short leash by head coach Nick Nurse, but if he continues playing the way he did, it will be hard for the 76ers to keep him off the floor. But even with McCain not being gifted anything in the Philly rotation, he continues to play with so much joy. Every movement of his on the court beams with so much happiness, and it all boils down to him being in a good place mentally.
“Man, because life is amazing. I can't complain. I'm in the NBA. I'm living a great life. No matter what happens, I'm gonna continue to work hard and come out here and just try to spread as much joy as I can to the people who come here and pay money. I'm just trying to give that energy back to them,” McCain said in his postgame interview, via the official 76ers account on X (formerly Twitter).
"Why do you play with so much joy?"
"Man, because life is amazing…no matter what happens, I'm gonna continue to work hard and come out here and just try to spread as much joy as I can." @PennMedicine pic.twitter.com/8LvNOvyWmh
— Philadelphia 76ers (@sixers) December 3, 2025
The 76ers need all the good vibes they can get especially with Embiid shuttling in and out of the lineup. And McCain is certainly doing his best to infuse the team with the energy they need to put together a winning campaign.
Can Jared McCain recapture 2024 form for the 76ers?
The 76ers looked like they drafted the biggest steal last year when McCain popped seemingly out of nowhere to produce multiple 30-point nights amid the team's injury woes.
But McCain suffered an injury as well, putting a huge damper on his development as a key piece for the 76ers for the long haul. And the further he gets from his injury troubles, the more it looks like he'll be able to string together the kind of games that would make him an invaluable member of the rotation once more.
