Nets waive Cam Thomas after failing to find a trade partner, opening the door for the scoring guard to join a new contender.
Just minutes after the Feb. 5 NBA trade deadline passed at 3 P.M. on Thursday, the Brooklyn Nets decided to allow their shot-hunting guard Cam Thomas to join a new squad.
According to ESPN's Shams Charania, Brooklyn chose to waive the microwave scorer after being unable to strike a deal on the trade market with any of the other 29 teams in the league.
"The Brooklyn Nets are waiving Cam Thomas, allowing the scoring guard to enter free agency, sources tell ESPN," Charania shared via X on Thursday afternoon.
"The Nets made the decision to allow Thomas to find a new home."
After averaging 15.6 points and 3.1 assists on a putrid 46.1% effective field goal percentage in 24 appearances with the abysmal 13-36 Nets this season, Thomas has been granted the ability to join any team with an open roster spot for the rest of the season.
Immediately after the news from Charania broke, Andscape's Marc J. Spears secured a new statement from Thomas himself, showing his excitement for the next chapter of his NBA journey.
"Super excited ready to actually help and contribute to another team," Thomas told Andscape.
"My next team is getting elite scoring, good playmaking and a good combo guard."
Thomas' five-year tenure with the Nets comes to an end in shocking fashion, as it was believed that a few interested parties, namely the Milwaukee Bucks, had legitimate interest in acquiring him to support their 2-time MVP Giannis Antetokounmpo in a second-half push for the postseason, but a deal failed to come to fruition.
Aside from Milwaukee, Thomas' market evidently dried up, leaving the Nets no other choice but to let the offensive-minded guard enter free agency.
The decision to drop Thomas comes as even more of a shock considering that his $6 million salary for the season would have given a plethora of prospective suitors an easy path to land him as a supplementary scoring piece, especially contenders with the mission of adding an offensive spark to their bench rotation.
Now, the Nets will let Thomas join a contender or a team looking for that scoring punch for free, losing the ability to gain even a second-round pick in return for their former No. 27 overall pick in the 2021 NBA Draft.
Thomas' time in Brooklyn might not have resulted in a ton of winning, but he surely brought some flare and excitement to each of his 239 career appearances with the team. In 2024-25, Thomas broke out as an undeniable, and underrated scoring force in a very limited sample size (25 games) by averaging career-bests with 24.0 points and 3.8 assists on a 51.3% effective field goal percentage.
Join the Community! Don't miss out on our NETS ROUNDTABLE community and the latest news! It's completely free to join. Share your thoughts, engage with our Roundtable writers, and chat with fellow members.
Download the free Roundtable APP, and stay even more connected.