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Jared McCain’s surprising contributions to the Philadelphia 76ers were not part of the plan. The Duke guard was expected to have a strong personality but fewer opportunities on a veteran-led team vying for a high spot in the Eastern Conference.

Instead, the Sixers find themselves at the bottom of the standings at 3-13 due to injuries and turmoil and have frustrating questions about center Joel Embiid and newcomer Paul George.

But McCain answered questions that few expected would even be asked this season. Now the Sixers look like a team that secured the No. 1 spot in the lottery last spring, and he’s playing like the No. 1 pick.

Here, we take a closer look at him and the other nine starters in this week’s rankings, revealing a 2024 class that’s deeper than some evaluators thought.

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Weekly Summary

• Portland center Donovan Clingan showed an unusual line against Houston on Saturdaywith 19 rebounds, three blocked shots… and zero points. But he also suffered a strain in his left MCL that night and will be out for at least two weeks, possibly longer.

• Some newcomers, like OKC’s Ajay Mitchell and Phoenix’s Ryan Dunnhave helped from the start, but are not on the leaderboard this week. But others who took a little longer to gain a foothold are now making their presence felt. These include recent contributions from Pelle Larsson from Miami, Antonio Reeves from New Orleans, Matas Buzelis from Chicago and Rob Dillingham from Minnesota. Houston’s Reed Sheppard also had his moments while facing a shutdown for minutes.

• Movement Summary: Four freshmen moved up, five moved downwith San Antonio guard Stephon Castle jumping up for the second straight year (from No. 10 to No. 6 to No. 2).

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Plot to watch

Home stretch for the rookies of the month. It’s like a Christmas rush: Only three game nights left to impress in the competition for the NBA’s ROM awards in October/November. Look for the strongest candidates at the top echelons of the ladder. But as a leading indicator of the Kia Rookie of the Year favorites, it hasn’t been reliable lately. The last ROY winner to earn his conference’s first rookie of the month award this season was Memphis’ Ja Morant in the 2019-20 season.

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Current ranking

(All statistics until Tuesday, November 26th)

1. Jared McCain, Philadelphia 76ers

Season statistics: 16.6 ppg, 2.2 rpg, 2.8 apg
Last ladder: #1
Draft pick: No. 16

Lip readers caught an exuberant McCain voicing his claim to the Rookie of the Year award during the Sixers’ win over the Nets. That was a night where their bleak present and their brighter(?) future collided, with McCain scoring 30 points and Tyrese Maxey adding 26 points. In McCain’s recent streak of seven straight 20-point performances, he averaged 26.1 ppg, shot 50.8% and hit 45.6%. from the bow. His movement and instinct were as remarkable as his scoring ability.

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2. Stephon Castle, San Antonio Spurs

Season statistics: 11.6 ppg, 2.7 rpg, 3.7 apg
Last ladder: No. 6
Draft pick: No. 4

It’s sweet to hear a 20-year-old praise another 20-year-old for his maturity. “He plays like he’s a lot more experienced than he is,” Spurs big man Victor Wembanyama said of Castle. “I don’t know where it comes from, but it’s good that we can trust him so blindly in the fourth quarter.” Big rise this week, both in attitude and in good numbers, as San Antonio went 3-0 .

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3. Jaylen Wells, Memphis Grizzlies

Season statistics: 12.1 ppg, 3.2 rpg, 1.8 apg
Last ladder: #2
Draft pick: No. 39

Veteran Marcus Smart hasn’t contributed much on the floor for Memphis (28 appearances in two seasons), but he has commented on Wells’ surprising early season and the work it has produced. “Just the fact that he comes in every day and doesn’t say much,” Smart said. “But he listens and he hears everything.” In the game in Chicago, where Scotty Pippen Jr. was in the spotlight, Wells essentially played the traditional “Pippen” role, contributing 26 points, four points and six assists.

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4. Dalton Knecht, Los Angeles Lakers

Season statistics: 11.2 ppg, 2.8 rpg, 1.1 apg
Last ladder: No. 3
Draft pick: No. 17

Last week’s “Knecht” mania turned into a more sober phase with the Lakers’ minor blip and its recent shooting percentage of 42.9%. Lakers coach JJ Redick was asked about his defense, and TheRinger.com provided an extensive piece questioning his ceiling as a 23-year-old rookie and justifying his slide to No. 17 in the draft. Welcome to the NBA, Rook.

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5. Zacharie Risacher, Atlanta Hawks

Season statistics: 11.2 ppg, 3.8 rpg, 1.4 apg
Last ladder: No. 4
Draft pick: #1

His shooting percentage is high, but his yardage has fluctuated (38.8%, 19.4% on 3-pointers since his 33-point outburst on Nov. 6 against the Knicks). Hawks coach Quin Snyder praised Risacher’s defensive work this week: “He had to guard a lot of plays. He played full-back in the Eurocup and French League, but we asked him to do this in many important games. He’s up to the challenge.”

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The next 5:

6. Yves Missi, New Orleans Pelicans

Season statistics: 7.5 ppg, 7.3 rpg, 1.1 bpg
Last ladder: No. 8
Draft pick: No. 21

Big night at IND (18p, 13r, 2 steals, 2 blocks) and a happy coach (“It’s getting better… before our eyes,” said Willie Green).

7. Alexandre Sarr, Washington Wizards

Season statistics: 10.6 ppg, 6.4 rpg, 1.9 bpg
Last ladder: No. 9
Draft pick: #2

Reached his highest score on Tuesday. (20) against CHI to cap a double-double week (14.3-10.0).

8. Zach Edey, Memphis Grizzlies

Season statistics: 11.1 ppg, 6.9 rpg, 1.0 bpg
Last ladder: No. 5
Draft pick: No. 9

Still out (ankle), but on track to start his own NBA FG% club: 60-60-60.

9. Bub Carrington, Washington Wizards

Season statistics: 9.5 ppg, 4.1 rpg, 4.6 apg
Last ladder: No. 7
Draft pick: No. 14

The shooting will die down for the rest of Wizards in 0-3 weeks, but it’s still ticking boxes.

10. Tristan da Silva, Orlando Magic

Season statistics: 7.5 ppg, 3.9 rpg, 1.8 apg
Final ladder: Not ranked
Draft pick: No. 18

Net rating 9.6, which represents defense and minutes in Magic’s 9-1 stretch since November 8th.

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Steve Aschburner has been writing about the NBA since 1980. You can send him an email Herefind his archive here And Follow him on X.

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