How Jared McCain has been a seamless fit on OKC Thunder
· Yahoo Sports
A month into his tenure, it's fair to say the Oklahoma City Thunder and Jared McCain are still in their honeymoon stage.
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When the Thunder made the buy-low move at the NBA trade deadline, expectations for McCain widened from helping the moment he arrives to being a long-term play. So far, it's been a mix of both.
Juggling injuries, McCain has had the chance to learn on the job. After rotting away on the Philadelphia 76ers' bench, the 22-year-old has been a microwave scorer off the bench for the Thunder. At first, it was out of necessity with Shai Gilgeous-Alexander's absence.
Now, McCain has meshed well with the reigning MVP. The 22-year-old's shooting has jumped off the page. Not only on his outside jumpers, but he's shown a little spark in the mid-range. Thunder head coach Mark Daigneault said his previous NBA experience has helped him from the jump.
"In his case, he's had NBA experience, but in a different program," Daigneault said. "We just give them as much as they need, but no more, and then just get them out there and let them declare themselves and their starting point.”
When the Thunder acquired McCain, I think most folks knew what to expect. He had a sizzling start to his NBA career thanks to his outside jumper. A meniscus tear and torn thumb ligaments derailed his momentum. The Sixers' addition of VJ Edgecombe buried him on the depth chart. But the talent was obviously still there. A change of scenery has helped him spread his wings a little.
"He's a guy that you have to race off the line, which opens up some of those drives. I didn't know his game that well, especially that part of his game, those mid-range plays show off his strength," Daigneault said. "He gets going downhill and he's able to absorb contact and rise up and shoot a balanced rhythm shot, which is harder to do than it looks.”
In terms of off the court, McCain has been as seamless a fit. Jaylin Williams talked about how perfect a personality he is for OKC's veteran locker room. Having mostly the same group the last two seasons, the 22-year-old has added some new blood to the program.
“Me and Dub were talking about it. We play a game on the plane where we’re all up there on the table,"Williams said. "Me and Dub were talking about it, 'We wonder if this is how everybody saw us when we were rookies.'"
Williams has also been surprised by McCain's defense. Of course, the undersized guard will never be a lockdown defender like most of his teammates. But the Thunder's league-best defense should have enough flexibility to absorb one meh defender. As long as the 22-year-old puts the work in.
"I didn't watch a lot of Philadelphia basketball, but I will say I did see things saying that he could shoot and he didn't play defense," Williams said. "But from what I've seen, he plays defense. He tries hard out there."
The McCain trade continues to be one of the most talked-about deals. For the Thunder, they had the chance to revamp some of their depth with the buy-low move. For the Sixers, folks' confusion has morphed into anger that they salary-dumped the young player so quickly.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: How Jared McCain has been a seamless fit on OKC Thunder