Tim BontempsNov 3, 2025, 07:54 PM ET
- Tim Bontemps is a senior NBA writer for ESPN.com who covers the league and what’s impacting it on and off the court, including trade deadline intel, expansion and his MVP Straw Polls. You can find Tim alongside Brian Windhorst and Tim MacMahon on The Hoop Collective podcast.
The Philadelphia 76ers upgraded Jared McCain to probable for Tuesday’s game in Chicago against the Bulls, clearing the way for the second-year guard to make his season debut in a battle of surprising teams tied for first place in the Eastern Conference two weeks into the season.
McCain has been out since September, when he tore a ligament in his right (shooting) thumb during a workout the day before Philadelphia’s season-opening media day. The 21-year-old hasn’t played in an NBA game since last December, when his rookie year was cut short after an extremely promising 23 games due to a torn meniscus in his left knee.
That injury, which required season-ending surgery, saw McCain’s season end after those 23 games (including eight starts) with a 15.3 scoring average while shooting 38.3% from 3, and had the No. 16 pick in the 2024 NBA draft well on his way at the time to winning the league’s Rookie of the Year award.
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Though McCain is set to return Tuesday, probably in a reserve role behind All-Star Tyrese Maxey and this season’s breakout rookie, No. 3 pick VJ Edgecombe, Paul George continues to sit out after offseason knee surgery. It’s unclear exactly when George will return to the court, but he has steadily been increasing his participation levels in practice over the past couple of weeks.
Philadelphia and Chicago both enter Tuesday’s game at 5-1, tied for the best record in the East and with the San Antonio Spurs for the second-best mark in the NBA, trailing only the 7-0 Oklahoma City Thunder.
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