The Philadelphia 76ers have faced their fair share of early scares during the 2024 preseason. Mere days after Paul George narrowly avoided disaster with a knee injury that proved less severe than anticipated, promising rookie Jared McCain endured a terrifying experience during the 117-95 win over the Brooklyn Nets.
After playing 23 minutes during the win over the Nets, McCain took a hard fall to the floor and appeared to have trouble breathing.
The medical team wasted no time, as McCain was helped off the court and brought to the locker room. It was later revealed by 76ers head coach Nick Nurse that the 20-year-old had been taken to the hospital.
Nurse told reporters that he'd never witnessed an injury of that nature before while providing the aforementioned update that McCain was headed to the hospital.
Nick Nurse says Jared McCain is on his way to the hospital after a hard fall in the 4th quarter of the Sixers' preseason game on Tuesday night. pic.twitter.com/ed45nVPIMz
— NBC Sports Philadelphia (@NBCSPhilly) October 17, 2024
Keith Pompey of The Philadelphia Inquirer later provided an update that McCain has been discharged from the hospital and will be re-evaluated later in the day.
Sixers rookie guard Jared McCain was discharged from the hospital early this morning and is at home resting, the team says. He will be further evaluated later today.
— Keith Pompey (@PompeyOnSixers) October 17, 2024
It's a promising sign that McCain was discharged, but it was a scary moment for the former Duke Blue Devils star.
76ers' Jared McCain discharged from hospital, will undergo further tests
McCain has been one of the 76ers' breakout performers during the 2024 preseason. He's been fearless in his approach to scoring, shooting at will from beyond the arc and turning heads with his ability to attack a set defense and get into the paint.
It seemed inevitable that McCain would crack Nurse's rotation at this rate, especially with a backcourt that's largely polarizing due to concerns about age and present-day value.
This injury could prove to be a setback, but it's promising that McCain has already been discharged from the hospital. As more information becomes available, his availability for start of the 2024-25 regular season will thus be revealed.
More important than basketball, however, is the fact that a human being had trouble breathing last night—and thankfully, the medical team was quick to act and bring him to the hospital.
However much time is needed for McCain to make a full recovery should be respected by fans and writers alike. Even Nurse, who has been coaching basketball since 1989, has never witnessed an injury quite like this.
The best we can do as observers is permit McCain the opportunity to rest, recover, and prepare for the season at the pace he's capable of.
Once he returns to the court, McCain will embark on a journey that should see him prove that he was undervalued at the 2024 NBA Draft. Some feared that his positional ambiguity would hold him back, but he's an elite shooter with shot creating skills that are well beyond his years.
Once McCain makes a full recovery, he'll be back on the court performing at the All-Rookie level that he's capable of reaching.