The Philadelphia 76ers have reached past the first-quarter mark of the season. Sitting at 7-15 over that span, little has gone right for the Sixers. That is, short of the arrival of rookie guard Jared McCain.
Among those who have worked closest with McCain since his arrival is Philadelphia 76ers assistant coach Rico Hines. Hines is renowned across NBA circles as a player development guru and known for the famed “Rico Hines Runs,” which take place at UCLA. Players from across the NBA gather for these private runs for a series of hard-fought pickup hoops and the opportunity to learn from Hines.
Before the start of the season. at the 76ers’ Media Day, McCain described his working relationship with Hines.
“I’ve worked with Coach Rico every day since Summer League. I’ve been with him in the gym in the morning before practice, just trying to figure out what I can do to help the team win, whatever that is, and still, obviously perfecting whatever I can that I feel may not be my role this year, but maybe down the line, just handling the ball, being able to lead a team, but still, obviously perfecting the catch and shoot, just being able to knock down shots, but obviously all around, just trying to get better.”
Clearly, that hard work has paid off already.
Ahead of a recent matchup against the Orlando Magic, Hines told Philly Sports Network about his early impressions of McCain and what makes him special as a player.
“The very first thing about him is his professionalism and his approach to trying to get better every day,” Hines said. “He’s very professional, extremely smart, a sponge. His work ethic is very, very contagious. He’s just a pleasure to be around.”
Hines continued, “We’ve been together since summer league, and one of the main things was just talking about routine, routine, routine. And he’s a very routine-based kid already, from his family, his upbringing, and who he is as a person. So it’s been easy. It’s been an easy transition, because he believes in hard work, he believes in routine, and wants to be [the] best he can be.
Through 22 games played, McCain has averaged 15.8 points for the Sixers while starting eight games. While the 76ers’ season surely has not gone as expected, McCain has not only earned a spot in the rotation but burst into the starting lineup on occasion, claiming a featured role even with the return of superstar center Joel Embiid.
For that success, McCain has always pointed toward working hard on and off the court.
The morning after making his NBA debut against the Milwaukee Bucks on Oct. 23, McCain discussed his debut, pointing immediately to his core connection to working hard and how it translates to playing hard on the court.
“Yeah, there’s, I mean, there’s such [a] thing as garbage time, but there’s no [such thing] at all for me,” said McCain the morning after his NBA debut. “I’m gonna take every opportunity I get and play as hard as I can… Anytime I step on the court, I’m gonna play as hard as I can. So I never treat it as garbage time, but I just learned to always play hard. I’ve always learned that, and I’ve always done that, so I’m gonna continue to do that.”
His head coach, Nick Nurse, has also taken notice of his hard work, praising him for his relentlessness ahead of the team’s matchup against the Los Angeles Clippers on Nov. 24.
“I think he almost always exudes a tremendous amount of confidence. I think he really is confident and certainly not afraid. The other thing you gotta notice or admire, whatever stage you’re at, is that he plays really hard. He plays really hard the whole time he’s out there. There’s no possessions off, and he’s chasing the ball, and he’s guarding hard, and he’s got a big motor. He can really play hard for long stretches.”
According to Rico Hines, this level of hard work has been a part of McCain since before he entered the league.
“The night he got drafted, we DMed each other. And I also talked to his coach, Coach Chris Carrawell, at Duke. He talked about how hard he worked and how much of a dog he is. And he’s definitely both. He works hard. He’s a dog. He wants to be great. He wants to see how much he can pull out of his potential. He wants to be the best player he possibly can be.”
“So it’s been an easy transition for both of us because he loves to get he loves to work. He really loves to work, and he asks a lot of questions, and he’s very, very smart. I think he’s got a great future, and I think he’s only going to continue to improve.”
McCain is Hines’ player, yes, but the coach of nearly two decades has never been shy about making known the importance of hard work and metal toughness. If Rico Hines says a player loves to work, he loves to work.
While it’s still early for the young guard, he’s been off to a sensational start to his career. It’s difficult to tell who enjoys working with whom more, McCain with Hines or Hines with McCain. But, by all accounts, this seems to be a player-coach match made in basketball heaven. One that will only help McCain develop further over his career.
