Cam Thomas joins Giannis Antetokounmpo in Milwaukee seeking a fresh start, as his surprising Nets exit sparks debate over Brooklyn's rebuild and its coach.
The Brooklyn Nets' break-up with Cam Thomas had been brewing for quite some time, but the final moments of their relationship came as a surprise.
Just minutes after the passing of this season's Feb. 5 trade deadline, ESPN's Shams Charania revealed that Thomas was waived and given the opportunity to join any team with open cap space. Three days later, a Milwaukee Bucks franchise desperate to support their two-time MVP, Giannis Antetokounmpo, signed the Nets' leading scorer of the past two seasons.
In an instant, Thomas made it clear that his wish to feel "wanted" by a team was granted and that he was excited to get a fresh start next to one of the game's greatest talents, despite having grown fond of his surroundings in Brooklyn.
According to the New York Daily News' C.J. Holmes, Thomas was happy to be embraced by the Bucks, leading to speculation that Brooklyn's belief in the "microwave" scorer had been sliding for some time.
Coach Jordi Fernández appeared to reveal that assessment on Monday in his blunt reaction to Thomas' departure.
"When Cam was here, he wore our jersey, he played hard and competed," Fernández told Holmes. "The only thing I can say is thanks for the time he spent with us.
"He always worked, always tried, and was a teammate. Now it’s exciting for him to start somewhere else. We just wish him luck and say thanks for wearing our jersey."
Whatever meaning can be taken from Fernández's chilly reaction to Thomas' departure, it's worth noting it had seemingly little impact on Fernández's day-to-day management of the roster.
Trust was hard to come by for Thomas from the Nets' coaching staff this season. Making it especially hard for Thomas were the franchise's slew of playable rookies from this year's draft -- all first-rounders, including Egor Dëmin, Danny Wolf, Ben Saraf, Drake Powell and Nolan Traoré. Thomas immediately saw a drop in minutes, from 31.2 a game to 24.3.
After missing 57 games in 2024-25, the streaky shooter returned to a completely different roster this season, one that had moved in a different direction and no longer required him to hoist 18-plus shots at night.
Fernández had moved on. That clearly showed in his remarks
Sure, maybe Fernández knew the move was imminent and he'd already begun plotting on ways to feature his newest project pieces in Ochai Agbaji and Josh Minott, but his visible poker face when expressing his thanks for Thomas' five years of service could be viewed as discouraging.
When healthy, Thomas played his brand of basketball -- high-scoring, but also prone to turnovers and minimal defense. His commitment to shouldering the team's offensive load early in his career was something to marvel, at least on certain nights.
Thomas' proclivity to shoot at will earned him a spot in the NBA's record books on multiple occasions, as he owns the all-time mark for highest scoring average through his first 10 career starts (29.1), and he is the youngest player in league history to record three consecutive 40-point games.
From a roster management standpoint, the obvious point of contention with fans was that Thomas was released with zero return for Brooklyn, not even second-round draft capital despite his $6 million salary being perceived as an easily tradeable one. It's fantastic that the scarcely-used scorer was given a chance to breathe new life into his career, but the fact that he went from one of the franchise's most valued assets to a throw-away came as a shock, to say the least.
The 23-year-old shoot-first, ask-questions-later guard made the best of his opportunities through his five years with the franchise, reaching historic highs and rather low lows in the process. Still, he'd leave Brooklyn as a career 15.2-point scorer and with a reputation as one of the league's best tough-shot-makers after averaging a career-high 24 points in a limited 25-game span in 2024-25.
Still, Thomas' erratic offensive play-style and injury-riddled 2024-25 campaign led to evident trade rumblings this past summer upon hitting restricted free agency. When sign-and-trade talks fells through, he'd return to the club on that one-year, $6 million qualifying offer, failing to reach an agreement on a more lucrative deal and secure the trust from the franchise that he'd been yearning for.
At the end of the day, Thomas' exit from a city he'd grown attached to and a team he'd given his all to was a forgone conclusion. However, it's possible that the rest of the Nets' locker room moves a bit differently after Fernández's muted reaction.
As for Thomas, he's been given a ticket to rewrite the narrative and prove himself to be an effective supporting piece in a competitive environment.
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