The Brooklyn Nets had to settle for waiving guard Cam Thomas after failing to find a trade partner before the NBA’s 3 p.m. ET deadline on Thursday afternoon, as first reported by ESPN’s Shams Charania.
The Nets had been actively shopping Thomas for weeks, but his market never materialized as a one-dimensional volume scorer whose role continued to decrease under head coach Jordi Fernandez, who prioritized giving his young players more time on the floor with eyes on a methodical rebuild.
Over his first eight games of the season before suffering a strained hamstring that held him out until Dec. 27, he averaged 21.4 points per game in 28.3 minutes.
Upon his return (16 games), Thomas averaged just 12.8 points per game in 22.3 minutes.
Now, the 13-36 Nets will have no roadblocks to playing their younger options, which include rookie guards Egor Demin, Ben Saraf, and Nolan Traore.
The writing had been on the wall that a split between Thomas and Brooklyn was coming. The team offered a two-year, $30 million contract with a team option and a one-year, $9.5 million deal with up to $11 million in incentives — both of which were rejected. It ultimately led the 24-year-old to sign a $5.99 million qualifying offer instead.
