The Philadelphia 76ers‘ preparations are in full swing for the 2025/26 NBA campaign, which commences on October 22nd. Last year, the Sixers had a terrible run, finishing 13th overall in the Eastern Conference with a 24-58 record. The team failed to qualify for the play-in tournament, and their disastrous campaign was limited to the regular season.
The Sixers suffered multiple injuries to some of their star players last season, which heavily impacted their performance during the regular season. Now, the team expects most of its players to be fully fit for the upcoming season, but it will be without one of its rising stars, Jared McCain, for a while.
Latest Updates on Sixers Shooting Guard Jared McCain
ESPN senior NBA Insider Shams Charania provided the latest updates on McCain. In the latest episode of NBA Today, he told fellow correspondents that the 21-year-old is expected to be sidelined for 4-6 weeks with a thumb injury.
Charania said, “Jared McCain is expected to undergo surgery on that right thumb and be sidelined approximately four to six weeks. So, he will be out to start the regular season, and then from there, you hope that he’s gonna be able to make a return.”
Shams says Jared McCain will be out 4-6 weeks with that thumb injury pic.twitter.com/Swzy9S3y2Q
— Oh No He Didn’t (@ohnohedidnt24) September 26, 2025
Charania added, “His season last year ended in a devastating way; he was en route to potentially being the rookie of the year. He suffered from a torn meniscus; he’s out the rest of the season, and now his season [2025/26] will start off with him on the sideline. But four to six weeks is the approximate timeline. He will be out after undergoing that surgery.”
McCain was the 16th overall pick in the 2024 NBA draft and had only played one year with the Duke Blue Devils at the collegiate level before that. The 21-year-old had an explosive start to his career last year, but his rookie season was cut short after he sustained a torn meniscus.
Now, McCain is expected to make a full recovery from his thumb injury in 4-6 weeks and will be expected to feature in the majority of the games in the upcoming season and help the 76ers towards a much-needed spot in the postseason.
The Sixers Kick Start the New Campaign on October 22
Philadelphia plays the first game of its preseason against the New York Knicks on October 2. They will play four preseason games before heading into the opening night of the new campaign, where they will head to the TD Garden to take on the Boston Celtics on October 22.
Philadelphia will play its first home game of the new season on October 25 when it hosts the Charlotte Hornets at the Xfinity Mobile Arena.