It's been quite the five months for the Philadelphia 76ers. In February, the fanbase sharpened their forks and lit their torches. Their polarizing decision to trade Jared McCain for future draft picks caused uproar. To the point that most emotionally checked out the rest of the year.
Now, those same Sixers fans are back. Their excitement bubbled over when they surprisingly landed LeBron James. In an offseason filled with dynamic changes, Philadelphia is now must-watch TV. Joel Embiid and Tyrese Maxey will welcome fellow NBA superstars James and Jaylen Brown.
According to one Sixers fan, you can link their blockbuster summer back to the 2026 NBA trade deadline. A social media user theorized in a TikTok video that the backlash from the McCain trade forced
Philadelphia to pivot with its top decision-makers. They went through a front-office change as Daryl Morey left and was replaced with Mike Gansey in May 2026.
"Thank you for your service and thank you for your sacrifice," the TikTok video said. "In some ways, you got flipped for LeBron James. So your self-esteem should be peaking right now."
McCain — who's a social media star — chimed in and played along with the joke. He commented on the TikTok video with: "...Thank you... miss yall too"
Someone on TikTok said that the domino effect caused by the Jared McCain trade led to the Sixers landing LeBron James
— Clemente Almanza (@CAlmanza1007) July 29, 2026
McCain commented on the theory lmao pic.twitter.com/xSf6VN0ToM
Of course, we have no idea just how much of the McCain trade played a role in the Sixers' decision to move on from Morey. But it's a popular theory that has taken over the NBA fanbase world. Regardless of the reasoning, Gansey has made a couple of big-time splashes in his first offseason as President of Basketball Ops. He previously spent time with the Cleveland Cavaliers.
Gansey landed Brown from the Boston Celtics in the NBA's biggest blockbuster deal. Not content with just that seismic move, they also pulled off the upset by convincing James to join the Sixers. Most thought the 41-year-old would return to one of his old teams in either the Cavaliers or the Miami Heat. Instead, he signed a two-year deal in Philadelphia.
I understand that the optics of trading away a fan favorite like McCain were bad — especially with some of Morey's comments in the aftermath — but the Sixers have bounced back pretty well. Now, most of Philadelphia is back on the hype train as it hopes to contend for an NBA championship with one of the most notorious starting lineups in recent years.
And in a roundabout way, you can link McCain's departure as the start of this domino effect.
This article originally appeared on OKC Thunder Wire: Jared McCain jokingly takes credit for Sixers landing LeBron James
