Speaker 1: I'm Tari's Mexi and you're listening to the seventy six
Speaker 1: Ers Insider's podcast.
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Speaker 4: Jared McCain, Welcome to Philadelphia.
Speaker 1: Thanks you.
Speaker 2: Something that I was excited to learn about you is
Speaker 2: that you're a journaler, right every day since high.
Speaker 5: School, Yes, since probably fresh sophomore year of high school.
Speaker 2: COVID and those of us who journal know that one
Speaker 2: of the benefits is you can crystallize your memories. Right,
Speaker 2: You've had a lot of memories to build in the
Speaker 2: last few days. What memories are you crystallizing from draft night?
Speaker 5: Really, it's like the very specific moments, like whether it's
Speaker 5: hugging my family, hugging my brother, trying not to chrip
Speaker 5: on stage, like very some putting on the hat, going
Speaker 5: backstage after the draft just to hug my family again,
Speaker 5: my friends.
Speaker 1: Very specific moments I like the journal about and kind
Speaker 1: of visualize.
Speaker 2: And you come almost straight to Philadelphia, which is a
Speaker 2: city you said you haven't spent much time in.
Speaker 4: So what are your first memories of Philly going to be?
Speaker 1: I guess now it's trying a Philly cheese steak, very good.
Speaker 4: Okay, what'd you get on it?
Speaker 5: It was lettuce, tomato, and onions. Okay, so I had
Speaker 5: a little bit of everything on it.
Speaker 1: No, she's.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I think that's part of the main memory I
Speaker 5: have right now. But going on over the bridge, New
Speaker 5: Jersey to to Philly. Yeah, we'll see what memories we
Speaker 5: get to make out here. Though.
Speaker 2: To bring a TikTok term to this more formal environment.
Speaker 2: You're someone with a ton of aura, right, And for
Speaker 2: those that don't know.
Speaker 1: Aura, I appreciate that where.
Speaker 2: Confidence meets individualism and you have a ton of it.
Speaker 2: How would you describe in your own words the Jared
Speaker 2: McCain aura.
Speaker 5: I think it's just a positive vibe who tries this
Speaker 5: half foward life.
Speaker 1: And yeah, I think it's pretty much it just positive vibes.
Speaker 1: That's what I try to bring everywhere.
Speaker 2: And that's a persona that's very clear in your online presence.
Speaker 2: How would you describe how that persona might differ from
Speaker 2: your basketball persona, which I know you've been very intentional
Speaker 2: about keeping basketball sort of.
Speaker 4: The main thing and the Internet is secondary.
Speaker 2: What's it like to live those sort of like it's
Speaker 2: like a hand of Montana thing, Like the two different lives.
Speaker 5: Yeah, I get a lot of the Detroit Bolton comparisons,
Speaker 5: Corbin Blue comparisons.
Speaker 1: That's my player comp right now.
Speaker 5: Well, yeah, it's kind of cool to have two different
Speaker 5: lives almost obviously the social media and the basketball, but
Speaker 5: a lot of stuff I do is almost combined with it.
Speaker 5: I try to have fun. That's literally the main thing
Speaker 5: I do with life. I talk to God about it
Speaker 5: a lot every day, and I kind of bring that
Speaker 5: onto the court. I'm just having fun and I'm out
Speaker 5: there doing what I love since I was four years old.
Speaker 2: You called yourself the hardest worker in the draft, Tyrese
Speaker 2: MAXI fancies himself the hardest worker in the league. What
Speaker 2: are you looking forward to in terms of learning from him?
Speaker 2: He's not a young guy anymore, He's a VET. He's
Speaker 2: an all star. People have compared you, guys for maybe
Speaker 2: what you lack in size you make up for and
Speaker 2: skill and didn't work.
Speaker 4: What do you think you can learn from him?
Speaker 1: Everything?
Speaker 5: I mean, curiosity is something I'm trying to be big on,
Speaker 5: especially coming to the NBA, not trying to big time anything,
Speaker 5: and so just asking him his how it transition went.
Speaker 5: Obviously he was one and done, and just trying to
Speaker 5: ask him how he fit into the NBA. What were
Speaker 5: some things he learned quickly that made him so successful?
Speaker 5: But yeah, obviously working out with him, the work ethic,
Speaker 5: just learning everything I can from him.
Speaker 4: Are you guys going to compete over who can work harder?
Speaker 1: I think so.
Speaker 4: I think that's a great competition.
Speaker 2: Speaking of work, Speaking of teammates, we got to talk
Speaker 2: about Joel Embiid, who has a sort of illustrious history
Speaker 2: of working well with guards with shooters. Two man game,
Speaker 2: a duke shooter that was here a few years ago.
Speaker 2: They thrived together, right, two duke shooters. Actually, if you
Speaker 2: want to talk about JJ and stuff.
Speaker 1: Yeah, I think I said I forgot about J.
Speaker 4: That's how long I've been here. Talk about illustrious career. Yeah.
Speaker 5: Yeah.
Speaker 2: When you think about becoming perhaps the next duke shooter
Speaker 2: to have good on court chemistry with Joel Embiid, what
Speaker 2: are the thoughts that go through your head?
Speaker 5: Everything, and that I can space four with him. I've
Speaker 5: seen one of the best players in the world, so
Speaker 5: again learning from him, ask him how to play off
Speaker 5: of him, and uh yeah, I think he'll be a fun,
Speaker 5: fun person to know.
Speaker 4: We've mentioned Duke a couple of times. Your experience there.
Speaker 2: I watched an interview where I think you were talking
Speaker 2: about the idea that being in that environment set you
Speaker 2: up well to handle haters right, to handle criticism. Perhaps
Speaker 2: Philly fans are going to hold you really accountable. Have
Speaker 2: you thought about the parallel sort of between Philadelphia fans
Speaker 2: and that experience, I.
Speaker 1: Do for sure they're their ride or die with their team.
Speaker 1: Even since high school.
Speaker 5: You know, I've had the social media, I've I've gotten
Speaker 5: hate since high school. I've painted my nails since high school.
Speaker 5: So I understand the tiktoks always are going to come
Speaker 5: into play. After one bad game. I understand it. We're
Speaker 5: going to do.
Speaker 4: What are they going to say?
Speaker 5: You already know, Yeah, it's gonna be like it's gonna
Speaker 5: I've been on Twitter. It's gonna be like Joel Embiid
Speaker 5: says Jared we need to make a three, and it's
Speaker 5: like Jared McCain, and then it's gonna be one of
Speaker 5: my tiktoks. I already know you know what it's gonna be.
Speaker 5: But Duke, I think going to Duke set me up
Speaker 5: for that. I already know what's gonna come with it,
Speaker 5: and I'm prepared.
Speaker 1: For it, and I just embrace it.
Speaker 5: I try to just work as hard as I can
Speaker 5: and improve everyone that I can.
Speaker 1: I belong here.
Speaker 2: You've been journaling since high school, You've been pinting your
Speaker 2: nails since high school. Why is this individualism that you
Speaker 2: really really sort of lead the charge in so important
Speaker 2: to you?
Speaker 5: I think because just being myself my parents have instilled
Speaker 5: in me to just be myself as I as a kid,
Speaker 5: and whether they supported the.
Speaker 1: Painting nails or the tiktoks or anything like that, they're
Speaker 1: always gonna just love me no matter what.
Speaker 5: And I think having that confidence along with them has
Speaker 5: biled me to the person I am today, Like, I'm
Speaker 5: not going to stop. I've gotten here being myself and
Speaker 5: I won't stop now for anybody in the comments telling
Speaker 5: me to not pay my nails or something.
Speaker 2: And you're going to inspire a lot of young kids,
Speaker 2: by the way, that might be dealing with similar things
Speaker 2: and trying to grow into themselves. What's your message to
Speaker 2: young kids that might want to walk on perhaps not
Speaker 2: the beaten path.
Speaker 4: Or beat themselves like you. What do you hope that
Speaker 4: they can learn from you?
Speaker 5: Find whatever you love, find whatever makes you happy, and
Speaker 5: just continue it. It doesn't matter if somebody doesn't like
Speaker 5: it or doesn't agree with you. If you like to
Speaker 5: pay your nails, pay your nails, if you don't, you
Speaker 5: don't you like journaling, you like meditation, Just find whatever.
Speaker 1: You love, continue to do it, and reach your goals.
Speaker 5: I think always trying to dream chase is something have
Speaker 5: been big on my whole life.
Speaker 2: You mentioned your parents, You've mentioned your brother a lot
Speaker 2: throughout this draft process. What little pieces of each of
Speaker 2: them are you going to take with you into this
Speaker 2: next phase.
Speaker 5: My brother's big on gratitude as well, and just staying
Speaker 5: present like this, a lot of stuff gets thrown at
Speaker 5: you in the NBA. It's very quick, so you have
Speaker 5: to just embrace every moment and try to take it
Speaker 5: in and learn as much as possible. I mean, these
Speaker 5: are the best players in the world and I'm a
Speaker 5: rookie coming in and.
Speaker 1: I'm trying to be one of those.
Speaker 5: So I'm just gonna ask them as many questions and
Speaker 5: have them as a backbone for anything I need.
Speaker 4: What about mom and dad?
Speaker 2: You mentioned brother, but maybe specific things you might take
Speaker 2: from Mom, who I saw here today and she seems
Speaker 2: just Yeah, I.
Speaker 1: Think my mom.
Speaker 5: It's very easy with my mom. It's just the positive
Speaker 5: attitude like she just she has. She's a bubble of
Speaker 5: life wherever she goes. So I think I'm just trying
Speaker 5: to bring that wherever I go. And then my dad,
Speaker 5: you know, he's he put the basketball in my hand,
Speaker 5: so I think with him, it's more keep the main
Speaker 5: thing the main thing like love what.
Speaker 1: You do and then work hard at it and continue
Speaker 1: to reach your goal. So I got a good balance
Speaker 1: of both.
Speaker 2: So I don't usually lead with this, but I also
Speaker 2: want to do what's your cookout order?
Speaker 5: Oh?
Speaker 1: What time of day is this?
Speaker 4: Well, if you're eating there in the morning, I have
Speaker 4: a questions.
Speaker 5: You want a little treat, I'm getting the bacon cheeseburger
Speaker 5: tray with double Cajun fries and the peanut.
Speaker 4: Butter peanut butter. Yeah, you're not throwing a.
Speaker 1: Chocolate I think it would be. But it's peanut butter chocolate.
Speaker 2: Okay, don't knock it till you try it, Blueberry Oreo cheesecake.
Speaker 4: We'll be back in North Carolina a couple of months,
Speaker 4: you can.
Speaker 2: Jared McCain, thank you so much. It was a pleasure
Speaker 2: to see you. And Philly is very excited.
Speaker 1: I'm very excited to.
Speaker 4: M Adan Bona. Welcome to Philadelphia.
Speaker 6: Appreciate.
Speaker 4: What's it like to be you today.
Speaker 6: Like a lot of feelings going through my body, you know,
Speaker 6: like stepping.
Speaker 7: Into the arena right now, feeling like yes, I'm an
Speaker 7: NBA player, Yes I'm a Philadelphia and sissy.
Speaker 6: You know, it's truly amazing. I can't wait to get tired.
Speaker 2: Draft night, you got emotional on stage, you got emotional.
Speaker 2: I understand seeing your jersey for the first time as well.
Speaker 2: How do you describe the feeling of becoming an NBA
Speaker 2: player in these last forty eight hours?
Speaker 7: We we've always dreamt about this moment, you know, for
Speaker 7: the past I'll save my whole life wanting to be
Speaker 7: a well worked for this for times like this.
Speaker 6: So when we get you, I just can't help to
Speaker 6: be emotional.
Speaker 7: You know, seeing my name on the back of an
Speaker 7: NBA jersey brought out all the emotions of me. I
Speaker 7: didn't want to cry today, but seeing my name be
Speaker 7: at an NBA jersey brought every single emotions.
Speaker 4: It means you care.
Speaker 1: It's beautiful.
Speaker 2: So take us back to why this moment is so
Speaker 2: meaningful for you.
Speaker 4: You found basketball at the age thirteen? Is that right?
Speaker 4: How did you find it?
Speaker 7: It's funny basketball found me because I was having my
Speaker 7: regular day and a random dude reached out to me, like, yo,
Speaker 7: do you play basketball? And I was like, no, I
Speaker 7: played soccer, and he was he was like really, like
Speaker 7: I really want to talk to your mom, and and.
Speaker 6: I was like, fine, you can forllow me to my
Speaker 6: mom's store. My mom store was down the street.
Speaker 7: He walked all the way to my momster with me
Speaker 7: and he told my mom, I want to train your
Speaker 7: son in basketball. And my mom was like, I don't know,
Speaker 7: I'm not I'm not willing to pay you to train
Speaker 7: my son. And me was like, I promise you, your son
Speaker 7: is going to be great. Gave him a couple of
Speaker 7: years in basketball. Your son's going to do great things.
Speaker 7: And my mom was like, nah, I don't think I'm
Speaker 7: going to pay you. So my mom turned him down.
Speaker 7: But my brothers paid for my first basketball practice. So
Speaker 7: I have two older brothers who we like, who are
Speaker 7: like like my evidence to me. So they paid for
Speaker 7: my first basketball practice. That's how we started. Basketball found me.
Speaker 4: So basketball finds you.
Speaker 2: And then shortly thereafter you moved to Turkey to start playing.
Speaker 4: What was that transition?
Speaker 7: Like, I think, I think that's a really good portion
Speaker 7: of my life because moving from Nanji to Turkey was
Speaker 7: it was a new and completed, brand new experience for me,
Speaker 7: moving to a country where I didn't know how to
Speaker 7: speak their language't I didn't know the culture, the food,
Speaker 7: their way, of life, which was a brand new I
Speaker 7: feel like it's a brand new world I was working into.
Speaker 7: But I see that as a as a blessing because
Speaker 7: I got there, I learned, I learned how to speaking
Speaker 7: the Turkish language. I'm a Turkish citizen now I play
Speaker 7: for the Turkish national team. It's so funny whenever I
Speaker 7: walk down paper CEM and I'm like, I'm Talkish, they
Speaker 7: were like, oh Turkish. I'm like, then I started speaking Turkish.
Speaker 7: They were like, oh, okay, okay, I like that. So
Speaker 7: I would see that as a blessing. To be able
Speaker 7: to move from moving away from home to a different
Speaker 7: place and finding home there too.
Speaker 6: I see that's a blessing.
Speaker 2: So you're already playing professional before you came over to
Speaker 2: the States to do a little bit of high school.
Speaker 4: So what was that transition then?
Speaker 7: Like for you, it was an amazing tradition because I was
Speaker 7: really young at the age of sixteen, I was I
Speaker 7: was practiced with grown men.
Speaker 1: You know.
Speaker 7: The physicality was completely different, a way stronger than maybigger
Speaker 7: than me.
Speaker 6: But I had the will, I had the passion. I
Speaker 6: wanted to be there.
Speaker 7: I loved every single momental day of it, and I
Speaker 7: came to to high school and it was a complete
Speaker 7: different game where the basketball played in Europe is completely
Speaker 7: different from the basketball player in high school.
Speaker 6: The speed, the temple, the physicality, and not see the mindset.
Speaker 6: This was complete.
Speaker 7: So it's like, I also see had a blessing because
Speaker 7: I get I had the opportunity to do well end
Speaker 7: different style of basketball in two different ways and to
Speaker 7: the first settings and then that kind of set me
Speaker 7: up for good.
Speaker 4: How did you choose U c l A after that?
Speaker 6: Every time?
Speaker 7: So when I asked me that, I say the question
Speaker 7: should be white, not U c l A, because like,
Speaker 7: who is gonna sound that U c l A, you know,
Speaker 7: but most importantly you say that, I felt like, what's
Speaker 7: the perfect hit for me? Going there and being a
Speaker 7: star as the freshman was. I think that was a
Speaker 7: really big step for me. Obviously, I have an African mom.
Speaker 7: She's big on the education. She really wanted me to
Speaker 7: go to like a really educational school and then usual
Speaker 7: it was one of the best in the country, so
Speaker 7: it's like a no brainer for my mom.
Speaker 6: But for me basketball wise, I think it's an amazing fit.
Speaker 7: They have amazing culture, eleven championship, they have a bunch
Speaker 7: of legends.
Speaker 6: We can talk, we can go.
Speaker 7: And we have Rico Hinds, Yeah, who is one of
Speaker 7: one of an egg brewing alone, brewing alone. It's also
Speaker 7: amazing to be in building with another blowing alumni.
Speaker 6: So it's amazing. Like the questions why not you seal
Speaker 6: he shouldn't be you know, I was.
Speaker 2: About to ask you about that continuity with Ricol Hines,
Speaker 2: who's now an assistant coach, and I understand you have
Speaker 2: a bit of a relationship with him already. What was
Speaker 2: his reaction to to your coming to the seventy six ers.
Speaker 7: It was I walked in the building, I saw him
Speaker 7: from distance from the glasses, and he was already smiling.
Speaker 7: I was like, yes, we in you know brewings. I
Speaker 7: feel like the Bruins connection is always there. Woke on
Speaker 7: the carts and we were already chanted the DS club.
Speaker 7: You know that that's really amazing to be able to
Speaker 7: meet someone from from the same unity, the same fatality.
Speaker 7: You know, it just make me feel welcome, you know,
Speaker 7: make me feel like home already.
Speaker 2: Head coach, Nick Nurse, you're wearing the expect to win bracelet,
Speaker 2: which I understand you put on as soon as you
Speaker 2: came in the building. That's a slogan for those that
Speaker 2: aren't aware that he brought to his time in Birmingham,
Speaker 2: England in the BBL, playing over or coaching rather in Europe.
Speaker 2: Brought it then to Toronto, where he's asking everybody to
Speaker 2: expect to win, no matter what the characteristics of any.
Speaker 4: Given day or any given game is.
Speaker 2: He believes that any group can go out there and
Speaker 2: expect to win.
Speaker 4: What do those words mean to you?
Speaker 6: It means a lot to me.
Speaker 4: You know.
Speaker 6: I came from a program where winning is an expectation.
Speaker 7: Also playing for UCLA with is sucial history, like every
Speaker 7: game we expect to win, but also onting about me.
Speaker 6: Things that means a lot to me.
Speaker 7: I wear them around my wrist, are working already, have
Speaker 7: my own risband that says power and the other one
Speaker 7: says strength. And I saw I saw a ristband when
Speaker 7: I walked into the building that says expected to win. Actually,
Speaker 7: my hostmom grabby because she knows how I like my
Speaker 7: ristbands and like I like wearing want my my wrist
Speaker 7: that means something to me, and she gave it to
Speaker 7: me and I saw and I said, I expect to win.
Speaker 7: I was like, amazing, and I put it on because
Speaker 7: I strive to win everything I do off because on
Speaker 7: the coat, I want to win, you know. So I
Speaker 7: feel like that's just kind of matching my type of
Speaker 7: person I am. Where like I love to wear stuff
Speaker 7: that means a lot on my wrist and the wristbands
Speaker 7: respect to win just matches me, just like perfect match.
Speaker 2: You know, the left hand is power, power and strength.
Speaker 2: You bring that to right hand expect to win. Why
Speaker 2: did you choose power and strength as those two values
Speaker 2: that are some point?
Speaker 6: I think these those are the things that keep that
Speaker 6: keeps me going.
Speaker 7: The power streps has like a couple of Babu vasony
Speaker 7: and actually lest I when these during my pre draft,
Speaker 7: when I started my pre draft, I had I had
Speaker 7: couple with that ripped during the pre draft, and I
Speaker 7: keep start filling them up.
Speaker 6: But I think my power it's it's actually my name.
Speaker 7: My traditional name Njiam is God's power, which I think
Speaker 7: power is in my name. And I think my family
Speaker 7: we all believe in the bigger power.
Speaker 6: Both so I have power, I have strengths.
Speaker 7: I believe my strengths come from selwhere So those are
Speaker 7: the two words that take it key to me.
Speaker 2: You've had so many experiences at such a young age,
Speaker 2: so many cultures, multiple families. What are you bringing along
Speaker 2: from each of those experiences, from Nigeria to Turkey, to
Speaker 2: California to u c LA. What do you bring with
Speaker 2: you from each of those experiences and those people now
Speaker 2: into your professional career.
Speaker 7: I think that brings me my love diversity. It just
Speaker 7: shows our we're able to connect with any group of people.
Speaker 7: It shows that I've been I've been to I've been
Speaker 7: different group of people. I've seen so many different cultures.
Speaker 7: I've seen so many dif first traditions, and I feel
Speaker 7: like I can bring my tradition to contribute to improve
Speaker 7: other traditions, to help AUDO.
Speaker 6: Traditions get better.
Speaker 7: And I feel like with my experience, I feel like
Speaker 7: I can connect with anyone in the world. And I
Speaker 7: think that's also going to help in the chema chemistry
Speaker 7: bonding with the time.
Speaker 6: I think that's going to help me a long way.
Speaker 7: And also it's going to help me to be able
Speaker 7: to connect with my tim It's easily well.
Speaker 2: We've already done a great job connecting on day one.
Speaker 2: It's been a pleasure to connect with you. Welcome, congratulations
Speaker 2: and thank you again.
Speaker 6: Thank you very much, appreciate you, thanks for having me