Jared McCain continues to single-handedly keep the Philadelphia 76ers afloat in the good news department.

In the latest ranking of first-year players for NBA.com’s Kia Rookie Ladder, the 20-year-old guard out of Duke University moved from No. 5 up to the No. 1 slot after a string of impressive performances in the past week and a half. Those performances in conjunction with injuries plaguing the Sixers’ stars has taken McCain from a rookie fighting for a rotation spot to a solid, dependable starter for Philadelphia.

McCain has been on an absolute tear as of late, notching 20-plus point performances in the past five consecutive games. In that span, he’s averaging 26.6 points on 50.5% field goal shooting and is 44.0% from beyond the arc. It’s a small sample size, of course, but those are some Tyrese Maxey-esque numbers!

Across all 13 games this season, McCain is averaging 15.2 points shooting 47.7% from the floor and 40.8% from three-point range. He remains perfect from the charity stripe, sinking all 27 attempted free throws in his young NBA career. Not bad for the 16th overall pick in the draft that has yet to even turn 21.

With Maxey on his way to returning to play after a hamstring strain sidelined him for six games (seven if he misses Wednesday’s contest), the question remains how he and the rookie will work together on the court. How coach Nick Nurse decides to utilize the pair of guards remains to be seen, but there is a ton of anticipation right now pondering the possibilities of a Maxey-McCain backcourt and what that might look like.

Having a rookie perform to this level, even with all the disappointment, injuries and drama have seemingly surrounded the Sixers to start this season, is a huge factor (if not the only factor) keeping even the most jaded fans interested in watching the 2-11 team right now.

With so little to cheer about, we can all at least enjoy watching this young player shine like a star.

Kia Rookie Ladder top 5, NBA.com, Nov. 20, 2024

1. Jared McCain, Philadelphia 76ers
2. Jaylen Wells, Memphis Grizzlies
3. Dalton Knecht, Los Angeles Lakers
4. Zaccharie Risacher, Atlanta Hawks
5. Zach Edey, Memphis Grizzlies