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Jared McCain Officially Christened a Sixers Rookie with Painful-Sounding Preseason Injury

Sixers PR says Jared McCain was re-evaluated on Thursday after taking a scary fall in the Brooklyn preseason game the other night. He was diagnosed with a “pulmonary contusion” but did not display concussion symptoms:
Another hard fall this game… this time, it’s Sixers’ rookie Jared McCain, who came down hard on his back.
McCain was able to walk off the court leaning on medical staff but looked extremely uncomfortable doing so. pic.twitter.com/YrEUHQZOei
— Erin Grugan (@eringrugan) October 17, 2024
Looked painful. Google says a “pulmonary contusion” is a fancy description for a bruised lung, so that’s the result of blunt force trauma, in this case landing flat on his back after going up for that rebound.
Good news is that it seems like McCain will be fine, but with a nasty-sounding injury suffered in the preseason, he is now officially a Sixers rookie. Welcome aboard!
Here’s my Mount Rushmore of Sixers rookie injuries of the last decade:
Jones fracture
Ben Simmons missed his entire rookie season after injuring his foot during a training camp scrimmage. A Jones fracture is when you break your fifth metatarsal, which is the bone joining your pinkie toe to the base of your foot.
Navicular bone
A broken bone in the middle of his foot kept Joel Embiid off the floor for two years. You should feel a wave of PTSD wash over you when hearing the word “navicular.”
thoracic outlet syndrome
My first day covering the Sixers was when Markelle Fultz forgot how to shoot free throws. I asked Brett Brown if we were making too much of the situation, he said “yes,” more or less, and then of course Markelle’s 14-game rookie season and entirety of his Sixers tenure was a disaster.
combination of Jones fracture + almost killed by sesame seeds
Zhaire Smith had the worst experience of anyone. Not only did he suffer the same bone break that Ben Simmons did, but he was also hospitalized for a terrible allergic reaction that required a feeding tube. Poor guy was doubly cursed.
Kevin has been writing about Philadelphia sports since 2009. He spent seven years in the CBS 3 sports department and started with the Union during the team's 2010 inaugural season. He went to the academic powerhouses of Boyertown High School and West Virginia University. email - k.kinkead@sportradar.com