TITLE: Thunder rookie Jared McCain juggles NBA playoff push and 5-million-strong TikTok following
SLUG: thunder-rookie-jared-mccain-tiktok-nba-playoffs
CONTENT:
Early on April 11, hours after scoring 15 points in a road defeat to the Denver Nuggets, Oklahoma City Thunder guard Jared McCain hopped off the team plane and into another role. Behind a gated fence at Will Rogers World Airport, hundreds of fans waited to greet the Western Conference’s top seed. The loudest cheers were not for MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander or rookie standout Chet Holmgren, but for the 22-year-old whose TikTok dances have turned him into a social-media fixture.
Standing on a makeshift platform, McCain flexed, spun and switched feet in a choreographed routine while teammates laughed and filmed. Gilgeous-Alexander borrowed McCain’s phone to capture the clip, which was later posted with a Rihanna-Drake mash-up and drew 5 million views in less than a week.
Two careers, one timeline
McCain launched his TikTok account on Feb. 6, 2020 while a freshman at Centennial High School in Corona, California. Since then he has amassed more than 5 million followers and 223 million likes—easily outpacing the combined totals of his two NBA franchises, the Philadelphia 76ers and Thunder. Brands such as Crocs, Sally Hansen and DoorDash have tapped the guard for promotional posts, opportunities that opened after California high school athletes became eligible for name, image and likeness (NIL) deals.
“People come up to me and don’t even know I play basketball,” McCain told ESPN. “They only know me from TikTok.”
Rise on and off the court
The 6-foot-3 guard’s online popularity grew in step with his basketball résumé. During the 2021 Nike EYBL Peach Jam, he uploaded dances after each game, prompting comments like, “Bro drops 45 then posts a TikTok.” Scholarship offers followed, and McCain chronicled every official visit—including Louisville and Houston—before announcing his commitment to Duke on TikTok in March 2022. As a Blue Devil freshman he averaged 14.3 points and 5 rebounds, helping Duke reach the Elite Eight while continuing to film locker-room celebrations.
Draft night in 2024 produced four more TikToks. Philadelphia selected him 15th overall, and his first video in a Sixers uniform—captioned “First tiktok in a NBA JERSEYYY”—became his second-most-liked post at nearly 3 million.
McCain opened his rookie campaign averaging 15.3 points over 23 games before a season-ending injury, sharing post-surgery thoughts with followers. Fellow players took notice. “You see his TikToks all over,” Thunder forward Jaylin Williams said.
Trade to Oklahoma City
On Feb. 2, 2026, Philadelphia traded McCain to Oklahoma City. His first public remarks surfaced two days later on TikTok—a singing tribute to Philadelphia set to Olivia Dean’s “A Couple Minutes.” The next post, filmed in an Oklahoma City hotel room with an “OKC” shirt and the caption “I need a new home,” surpassed 2 million likes.
The content quickly roped in new teammates. A March 1 dance featuring McCain, Williams and Isaiah Hartenstein hit nearly 18 million views, stunning both big men. The trio later negotiated an informal cut of McCain’s next sponsored post; McCain clarified he is not part of TikTok’s creator fund.
Maintaining balance
Now deep into a playoff run, McCain says his approach to social media mirrors any player’s personal branding. “I know how to balance it—like not posting right after losses,” he explained. For the Thunder, his influence is viewed as a positive connection to younger fans.
Whether encouraging airport crowds at 3 a.m. or sinking corner threes at Paycom Center, McCain continues to toggle between two high-profile arenas—each feeding the other, both in real time.
Source: ESPN
