The scene on the airport in Oklahoma Metropolis has grow to be a practice: Thunder followers standing behind a tall, gated fence await the possibility to high-five gamers getting back from a street journey. Generally this occurs in the midst of the evening.
Early the morning of April 11, a gaggle of followers held indicators and predictably cheered for his or her favorites — reigning NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Jalen Williams, Chet Holmgren and Luguentz Dort. However the noise appeared to peak for Jared McCain, who jumped up and down earlier than slapping palms with followers.
McCain then stood atop a makeshift stage amid screams and chants of “OKC” loud sufficient to get up town. He raised his arms towards followers to hype them up and commenced to bounce.
He snapped his head to the left, put his left foot ahead, flexed his arms to his facet, then introduced his left foot again and swirled his palms in a circle. He repeated the motion alternating from proper foot to left. Gilgeous-Alexander, Williams, Aaron Wiggins, Jaylin Williams and Isaiah Joe stood loudly laughing and filming the sequence.
That is Jared McCain doing what Jared McCain does for the social media empire he has been constructing since he first posted a TikTok video on Feb. 6, 2020. His dances usually set traits on the app, turning low-key sounds into automated hits. Crocs, Sally Hansen and DoorDash are among the many firms that McCain has endorsed on his web page. His first sponsorship video got here in highschool as prep college students in California are eligible for NIL.
McCain, a guard for the top-seeded Thunder within the NBA playoffs, boasts greater than 5 million followers on that social platform, which is greater than each of his NBA groups to this point (Thunder and Philadelphia 76ers) mixed. He has amassed 223 million likes — and counting. He blends these two lives: one as an expert hooper who dropped 15 factors hours earlier in a loss to the Nuggets, and the opposite as a TikTok creator with equal components persona and dance strikes.
For his Thunder teammates, that evening on the airport marked a enjoyable alternative to create content material. For McCain, it is one other instance of the impression his platform has — turning him right into a family title … together with his followers together with those that have by no means seen him splash a 3-pointer.
“I feel it is actually cool that folks come as much as me and nonetheless do not know I play basketball,” McCain informed ESPN. “They solely know me from TikTok. I feel that is actually cool. The truth that I’ve two completely different platforms like that, two alternative ways of figuring out me, I feel it is superior.”
Gilgeous-Alexander, who averaged 6.6 assists on the season, logged one other one which early morning on the airport. Gilgeous-Alexander used McCain’s telephone to report so McCain may put up the dance video on his account later, with a remixed audio of Rihanna and Drake’s “Work.” The put up garnered 5 million views in lower than every week. Jaylin Williams shared his perspective on TikTok, captioning it: “present them that lil dance you be doin.” It immediately turned one in all Williams’ most considered posts.
“I feel it clearly performs into the affect you might have for the youthful technology. That is all that is actually about,” McCain stated. “With the ability to simply affect positivity and having the ability to be your self it doesn’t matter what the state of affairs is to the youthful technology.”
Then a freshman at Centennial Excessive Faculty in Corona, California, McCain’s first put up included him dancing alongside a teammate. He posted 4 extra instances till the COVID-19 pandemic hit. TikTok supplied one other exercise throughout lockdown.
He primarily dances, one thing he informed ESPN he all the time appreciated to do. Nevertheless, he would not have a dance background, saying he watched the Disney collection “Excessive Faculty Musical.”
“It is simply from beginning, man. It is from beginning,” McCain stated of his dancing. “Shout out my Mother and Dad, man. They obtained rhythm. I really feel like I obtained it from them and it simply form of takes apply. Often a while and apply.”
As with most content material creation, it took time to construct a following. In Might 2021, his movies routinely hit six figures. He did a duet with NFL broad receiver JuJu Smith-Schuster, additionally recognized for exhibiting off his strikes.
The locker room at Centennial turned a part of TikTok lore. He returned there after being drafted by the 76ers in 2024, dancing in a video captioned: “[If you know you know] this locker room,” reaching greater than 15 million views.
McCain pinpointed the Nike EYBL Peach Jam match in July 2021 because the second he seen the account rising. Flashing a large smile, he posted widespread dances after each recreation, prompting feedback akin to: “Bro makes this then drops 45” or “Aau star by day TikTok star by evening.”
“That is when it began to travel,” McCain says. “And so they began [to] notice I performed basketball and that is after I began to get [college] provides and it went on the similar time.”
His star on and off the court docket rose in a parallel trajectory. The views elevated as colleges recruited him. McCain documented the expansion.
An official go to to Louisville warranted a post to the TikTok audio “Ski x Surf,” a favourite of his. A month later, he danced throughout an official go to to the University of Houston. McCain would return dwelling the place he usually shot movies together with his teammates or mom.
When he dedicated to Duke in March of 2022, McCain shared his determination on TikTok, too, garnering greater than 3 million views.
As he headed to varsity, a query arose about how he would steadiness his recreation on social media with taking part in basketball. Duke coach Jon Scheyer said earlier than McCain’s freshman season that he had no considerations about TikTok impacting McCain’s play.
Scheyer was proper. McCain averaged 14.3 factors and 5 rebounds per recreation on a Duke staff that reached the Elite Eight. Within the aftermath of Duke’s Candy 16 victory, the locker room included McCain and his teammates dancing for TikTok. One person commented: “think about being Houston listening to this within the different locker room.”
The 76ers chosen McCain at No. 15 within the first spherical of the 2024 draft — a day that additionally included 4 TikTok posts.
Lower than two years later, McCain in contrast his balancing act of posting and taking part in basketball to that of another skilled athlete with a social media model.
“We have now a social media account and plenty of them do model offers and stuff. And for me the TikTok posting is stuff that I have been doing for a very long time,” he stated. “So I form of know how one can steadiness it whether or not it is timing of posting after losses like, not likely posting then. Simply having consciousness of it.”
McCain’s first video following the draft was of him in a 76ers uniform with the caption: “First tiktok in a NBA JERSEYYY,” his second-most appreciated TikTok ever with slightly below 3 million. Commenters relished witnessing him develop up from baby-faced freshman to lottery choose.
A scorching begin as a rookie — 15.3 factors per recreation in 23 video games — amplified the star he’d constructed off the platform with followers following the journey in a singular approach. His locker room movies continued, and teammates hopped in, together with a memorable put up with veteran guard Kyle Lowry that eclipsed 7 million likes. After struggling a season-ending harm, McCain’s post-surgery ideas went on TikTok, sharing love and appreciation for the assist.
Different NBA gamers took discover.
“Simply being on social media, in fact you see Jared. You see his TikToks throughout,” Jaylin Williams informed ESPN. “However I imply actually on the time, I simply noticed him as a younger child doing TikToks.”
As McCain gained traction on the app, his posts usually included feedback from viewers like: “Think about if Jared was on the Thunder.”
“Yeah I’ve seen these,” McCain stated, smiling. “It is fairly loopy the way it’s a full circle second.”
The 76ers dealt McCain to the Thunder on Feb. 2. Two days later, his first assertion after the transfer got here on TikTok. He shared a “tribute to Philly” by singing a snippet from Olivia Dean’s “A Couple Minutes.”
By McCain’s subsequent put up, he started his Oklahoma Metropolis period, carrying an “OKC” shirt and dancing in his hotel room with the caption: “I want a brand new dwelling,” exceeding 2 million likes. McCain stated it was all about exhibiting his genuine feelings to “the TikTok group” within the midst of his first commerce.
Whereas his teammates in Philadelphia had firsthand expertise with McCain’s TikTok stardom, these in Oklahoma Metropolis hadn’t but.
Williams stated he has seen McCain report solely “a pair” movies whereas the 2 have grow to be teammates. However on March 1, McCain shared one of him dancing to the refrain of Milky’s “Simply The Means You Are” whereas Williams and teammate Isaiah Hartenstein stood within the again — virtually like proud older brothers trying on.
“We had simply arrived late right into a metropolis and we simply randomly put it on they usually needed to be in it and so we simply put it collectively,” McCain stated. “So it is a type of issues simply having enjoyable, new teammates simply having the ability to vibe with them.”
Earlier than Williams may reply what it was prefer to report the video, McCain interjected with “generational alternative,” earlier than the middle clarified.
“Nothing loopy,” he stated. “Regular video.”
Nevertheless, when knowledgeable by ESPN that it is one in all McCain’s hottest TikTok movies at slightly below 18 million views, Williams could not imagine what he heard. He let loose an “OH,” earlier than yelling throughout the locker room to ask Hartenstein if he knew, too. The middle did not, and that is the place the chatter started.
“We should always get a share,” Williams informed McCain, close by at his locker. “… We should always get a thousand [dollars].”
Hartenstein and Williams then requested whether or not ESPN knew how a lot McCain made off the video, however the guard clarified that he is not a part of TikTok’s creator fund. The 2 facilities got here to the conclusion that McCain most likely obtained one other deal from it. Within the midst of the negotiation, Williams found what number of likes it obtained.
“One million level [nine] LIKES?” Williams exclaimed.
Ultimately, the trio reached a deal — brokers not concerned — that may require a lower of McCain’s subsequent TikTok endorsement video. They did not disclose phrases, however they did shake palms.
McCain then resumed preparation to play towards the LA Clippers that evening, rapidly shifting from one life to a different. He recorded a follow-up video with Williams and Hartenstein every week later, with Hartenstein shying away from the digital camera this time. It garnered over 1 million likes in 4 days.
With TikTok gaining steam proper earlier than the pandemic, McCain is arguably on the forefront of a development of athletes posting on the app. And he would not need it another approach.
“I simply assume over time it is form of been like that. Whether or not youngsters coming as much as me saying that I encourage them to do sure issues, however I am simply doing me,” he stated. “Then no matter comes out of it [positively] is nice.”
