Cam Thomas believes he\u2019s a star.\u00a0And there\u2019s no telling him otherwise.<\/p>\n
Not Sean Marks, other NBA GMs and certainly not Zach Lowe, etc. Not any of the fans or pundits who felt whatever they did about him amid contract negotiations. The Nets chose to take a different route, drafting several guards while ultimately reaching a stalemate with Thomas. And so, he goes into 2025-26 on a $5.99 million qualifying offer, a free man at season\u2019s end.<\/p>\n
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It\u2019ll be a year of limbo between Brooklyn\u2019s rebuild and a fifth-year guard, which Marks rightfully said Thomas has a \u201cchip on his shoulder.\u201d<\/p>\n
Here\u2019s where things can get funky for the homegrown-lovin\u2019 Nets: What if Thomas is the star he believes he is?\u00a0<\/strong><\/p>\n That\u2019s not a declaration, it\u2019s a legitimate question: What if the 23-year-old homegrown Net exceeds all expectations and becomes a flouring star in the NBA? The measure of success ultimately comes down to results \u2014 can he erase the noise and buy into something that might not include him beyond 2025-26? Could it potentially derail tanking plans?<\/p>\n The Nets gambled with Thomas. They conditioned their flexibility with him specifically, thus Thomas gained control of his own destiny in the offseason. He gambled on himself, too. Thomas is ultimately expecting to be paid more next year based on his personal expectations that he can be a star on a good team. Next year will likely give him more opportunities for a long-term deal: At least 10 teams and possibly more will have cap space. This year, Brooklyn had a monopoly.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n After averaging 22.5 points in 66 games in 2024-25, the 6\u20193\u201d guard came back and averaged a career-high 24.5 points in his first year under Jordi Fernandez, though he only played in 25 games due to a hamstring injury. That injury history hurt him as much if not more than his deficiencies in playmaking and defense.<\/p>\n A lot of attention was focused on his \u201cpushback\u201d about narratives that he\u2019s a \u201cball hog,\u201d but Cam defended himself at Media Day in a fair manner.<\/p>\n \u201cI think people just wanted something to talk about,\u201d Thomas said Tuesday. \u201cLast year when I was out there playing, we were the 6-7th seed in the East and everybody wanted us to lose and tank, so that\u2019s not really a fair fact about the way I play.\u201d<\/p>\n Here are the facts behind the matter. <\/strong><\/p>\n The Brooklyn Nets were the eighth seed in the East with an 8-10 record when Thomas injured his hamstring on November 25. The tank could begin. By time he returned on December 29, the Nets were seven games below .500 and both Dennis Schroder and Dorian Finney-Smith were traded during the weeks Thomas out. He played one more game on January 2 and then we didn\u2019t see him again until February 28, when the Nets were 21-38.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n He scored 30+ points (one 40+ point game\u2014 the ninth of his career) in six of the first 18 games when he was healthy and the Nets were rolling. He tweaked his game a little bit and took more threes and less mid-range jumpers, averaging 10.4 FGA within the perimeter (down from 12) and 7.8 three-point attempts (up from 6.0).<\/p>\n He distributed the rock more and finished with a career-high in assists (3.8) and even held the ball less if you want the nitty gritty, finishing fourth on the team for average touches per game (59.9) behind Schroder, D\u2019Angelo Russell, and Ben Simmons. Thomas slightly improved his average seconds per touch from 4.03 in 2023-24 to 3.9 in 2024-25.<\/p>\n Thomas closed out his answer regarding offseason comments with this: \u201cBeing honest, I\u2019m pretty sure not many people watched the Nets last year that was actually [able] to comment on the situation.\u201d<\/p>\n That notion isn\u2019t far fetched for a team that had virtually zero intrigue after Thomas got injured and Schroder and Finney-Smith were traded. Not to mention, they only played one game on TNT and four on NBA TV.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Small sample size or not, the Nets offense was limited with shot creators and the possession sometimes ended with a desperation attempt as the shot clock expired. They led the NBA for field goal attempts (10.7 per game) when the shot clock was at four seconds or less; second-most FGA in the NBA (9.6 per game) when the shot clock ranged from seven to four seconds.<\/p>\n This is not an efficient means of offense and at times, Thomas became a victim from Brooklyn\u2019s inability to create shots quick in a half court set. The 23-year-old attempted the third-most field goals in the NBA (2.4) with the shot clock at four seconds or less, trailing only Brandon Ingram and James Harden.<\/p>\n Here\u2019s Thomas\u2019 shot volume based on time remaining on the shot clock:<\/strong><\/p>\n 4-0 seconds (very late): 2.4 | 3rd in the NBA<\/p>\n<\/li>\n 7-4 seconds (late): 2.1 | 11th in the NBA<\/p>\n<\/li>\n 15-7 seconds (average): 9.6 | 10th in the NBA<\/p>\n<\/li>\n 18-15 (early): 1.9 | Rank N\/A<\/p>\n<\/li>\n 22-18 (very early): 2.0 | Rank N\/A<\/p>\n<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n All stats via NBA.com<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n Sure, it\u2019s a testament that he gained trust from his counterparts on the court, but it also goes back to his point about watching Nets games and understanding the circumstances. They overachieved early, he got hurt, but they were a playoff team when he was healthy.<\/p>\n He\u2019s often labeled a shot chucker, but 13% of his shots came within the final four seconds of the shot clock. Is that an indictment on him or the situations the team put him in? Maybe both?<\/p>\n We can pile onto his argument and mention how he\u2019s made history, specifically his 40-point outbursts. There\u2019s simply no need to go there. It wasn\u2019t enough then and it isn\u2019t now. So both sides are looking forward.<\/p>\n As for his defense and playmaking, he\u2019s made improvements, but they\u2019ll have to improve more if he\u2019s going to get his bag because teams increasingly want complete players. The question for the Nets as well as other teams that might want to take chance on him is simple: Can he help the team win?<\/strong><\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n There is optimism on both sides at least publicly.<\/p>\n \u201cWe had really good conversations with Cam [Thomas] towards the end of the summer when it became pretty apparent he was coming back and we weren\u2019t gonna find the common ground on a contract,\u201d Sean Marks told YES. \u201cWhat defined it for me was he said, \u2018I\u2019m all in. I\u2019m all-in on Brooklyn, I want to be here.\u2019 <\/strong>I think that showed maturity on his behalf\u2026 He has an elite skill and that\u2019s a skill that any coach and any team can capitalize on.\u201c<\/p>\n The last sentence is interesting. So are his comments about Thomas being \u201call-in\u201d with Brooklyn, the only time that Marks gave a peak inside any conversations between the Nets and Thomas. It\u2019s the right attitude for someone who wants more for themselves in the future. It\u2019s a stinger for Brooklyn fans who longed for Thomas to remain a Net in the long run.<\/p>\n Which begs the question again: What if he blossoms into a star this year?\u00a0 Does that automatically mean the Nets overachieve and potentially hurt their draft odds? Could he be a trade piece? That\u2019s not likely. He would have to approve any deal and again, at this point and likely through the deadline, only one team has cap space \u2026 his team.<\/p>\n Advertisement<\/p>\n We won\u2019t know anything of course until the games begin, but this is all to say that it should be fun (if puzzling) watching a rebuilding team with minimal expectations clash with a good coach who wants to win every game and a hungry young player like Thomas who needs to change his perception around the league.<\/p>\n It probably won\u2019t make or break the Nets. One player very rarely does. However, one of those very rare players was his biggest believer.<\/p>\n\n