Jared McCain is smiling his way to Rookie of the Year.

The 20-year-old’s rookie season has taken off in the last few weeks and you can tell he is enjoying every moment on court for the Philadelphia 76ers.

McCain, the 16th overall pick of the 2024 NBA Draft, is now a clear early frontrunner for the coveted Rookie of the Year prize and has taken much of the league by surprise.

With most people more distracted by his popular TikTok videos that reach millions of views every time he posts, and his Caleb Williams-esque painted fingernails, his basketball ability went a little under the radar.

While McCain grew up in a very different era and has a vastly different personality to the likes of Steph Curry, he possesses similar qualities to the four-time NBA champion who has been his inspiration.

“He’s always been my favourite player in the league,” McCain said recently of Curry.

“Steph influenced so many people, including me, in my generation. When I was growing up, I wanted to shoot 3s from as far away as I could.”

It is no wonder McCain drew inspiration from Curry. He grew up in California not far from the Golden State Warriors and was just 11 during the Curry dynasty’s first championship in 2015.

The 20-year-old recalls watching the Warriors and says he studied Curry’s game and wanted to be just like him.

“I think I watched him more off the ball than on the ball,” McCain said. “I watched the way he relocates after he passes it.

“I watched the way he’s able to sprint around the court. I think I’m in really good shape, and I get my feet set fast. So those are some things that I think I can use to my advantage to get shots off.”

His ROY chances increase every game and he recently set the record for the most 3-pointers made in a rookie’s first five career starts and set a new Sixers’ record for the most 3s made in the first 15 games of a 76ers’ career (37).

He has stood out amongst his fellow rookies, most notably going seven successive games scoring at least 20 points.

No other rookie had even hit seven 20-point games in total during the whole season.

Sixers’ head coach Nick Nurse has also been full of praise for the franchise’s first round pick, admitting that no one in the front office expected the rookie to become this important this quickly.

“I’m surprised for sure that he’s produced this much, this early,” he told reporters.

“But when you saw him in summer league, he did the little things. I thought it was pretty obvious that this kid could play.”

The Sixers this season have been shockingly poor beyond anyone’s expectation, stars like Joel Embiid and Paul George have yet to hit form.

With leaks of dressing room unrest, McCain serves as one of the bright spots for a team that is 14th in the Eastern Conference.

The rookie also revealed that he has gotten used to critics and the discussion around what he does off the court, whether it’s social media activity or painted nails.

“I’m so used to the talk right now that it doesn’t really matter what anyone says,” McCain said.

“I’ve been dealing with it since high school. I hear it all the time; they call me ‘TikTok Boy’ and things like that.

“It’s just that I’m on a bigger stage right now. I know that I work hard. I know how much I put into the game of basketball. So, I’m not going to allow how people feel about what I do to affect my play.”

For McCain, if he persists with this form for the rest of the season his self-declaration as rookie of the year, something which he proclaimed after sinking a three against the Brooklyn Nets, could well come true.

The 20-year-old will also have to hope that the seasoned stars on his team will fall into form and soon and that the Sixers can pull themselves out of the hole they are in and has seen them start with just three wins from their opening 17 games.