Oklahoma City’s trade-deadline acquisition has made an immediate impact for the team, already achieving a franchise milestone in his early Thunder tenure.
Coming into the 2025-26 season, the Oklahoma City Thunder arguably have the deepest roster in the NBA.
After capturing their first-ever title in 2024-25, the Thunder returned all of its core pieces and have positioned themselves to become the first back-to-back champions since the 2017-18 Golden State Warriors. OKC started the season at a historic 24-1, despite a few key players missing time, highlighting the Thunder’s depth and showing no signs of a championship hangover.
Following the historic start, Oklahoma City hasn’t been as dominant since the Vegas trip. Since December 13th, the Thunder are 23-14, showing their vulnerability, as a few of the team’s weaknesses have been more on display during this stretch.
To no one’s surprise, Sam Presti made an out-of-the-box move for Jared McCain right before the NBA Trade Deadline, sending a small portion of their surplus of draft picks to Philadelphia for the former 2024 first-round pick. Since arriving in Oklahoma City, McCain has provided a significant boost off the bench for the Thunder.
Jared McCain’s Impact for the OKC Thunder
Knew what the Thunder were getting from McCain as a three-point shooter + movement shooter + upside as a secondary playmakerBut McCain’s utilization in the mid-range has exceeded expectationsIt’s a legit weapon for him
In his first ten games with the Thunder, McCain tallied 11.8 points while shooting 47.7% from the floor and 42.8% from deep on 4.2 attempts a game. The second-year-player has scored in double figures seven times and has scored over 20 points twice with OKC.
McCain’s quick start has helped the second-year guard become the fastest Thunder player to score 100 points off the bench since James Harden.
McCain’s highest-scoring output in his Thunder tenure is his 21-point outing in Brooklyn, which is ironically his highest-scoring game of the season. Still, the second-year player’s most impactful performance for OKC came against Denver.
While the Thunder are still missing a few key members of its top creators in its matchup against the Nuggets, McCain stepped up and delivered in a high-leverage game. Bolstering the bench, scoring 14 points on 6-of-8 shooting from the floor, 2-of-3 from deep, and 4-of-5 from the free throw line, while being a +9 on the floor, in 19 minutes of action.
Yes, the Thunder are still dealing with injuries, placing more responsibility on McCain in the second unit, as they will need to rely on his production to help maintain the No. 1 seed throughout the regular season, with the Spurs right on their heels, only three games behind.
There’s uncertainty about what McCain’s role will be when Jalen Williams and Ajay Mitchell return from their injuries. However, there is one certainty: the Thunder desperately needed more perimeter shooting even with Williams and Mitchell in the lineup.
President of Basketball Operations Daryl Morey said the Philadelphia 76ers “sold high” on McCain. After a strong start to his rookie season, it was cut short due to a torn meniscus. McCain averaged 15.3 points on 46% shooting from the floor, 38.3% from deep on 5.8 attempts, and 87.5% from the free-throw line, along with 2.6 assists and 2.4 rebounds in 23 games with the 76ers.
After struggling with injuries to start the season, McCain has found his form and rhythm, looking even better than in his rookie year since his arrival in Oklahoma City.
Main Image: Alonzo Adams-Imagn Images
