The Brooklyn Nets only added to their already elite offense when they selected Cam Thomas with the No. 27 pick in the 2021 NBA Draft. He entered the draft with a dominant skill trait of pure scoring and has put it on full display at the 2021 NBA Summer League.
Thomas’ latest performance came in Sunday’s 104-100 win over the San Antonio Spurs in which he had 36 points on 11-for-25 shooting from the field, including 3-for-6 from beyond the arc. He also shot 11-for-11 from the free-throw line.
Thomas hit the dagger on a 25-foot step-back 3-pointer over Joshua Primo and closed the game with four straight free throws to seal the win.
“Just win, that’s in my mindset. I just want to win the games, my coaches and teammates trust in me, so I’d like to thank them for having the trust in me to close out the games for us,” said Thomas after the win. “It’s just confidence, have all the confidence.”
Thus far, Cam Thomas has shined in the biggest moments for the Nets when closing games, including a one-legged game-winner in double-overtime against the Wizards.
He’s now scored 30-plus points in back-to-back games, pushing him to lead all players in NBA Summer League with 27.0 points per game. His point totals have steadily increased over each game–19 points in Game 1, 22 points in Game 2, 31 points in Game 3, and 36 points in Game 4–as the guard has thrived in a spacious modern NBA game.
The 19-year-old has also shot 42.3% from the field, 36.0% from three-point range, and 84.6% from the free-throw line over the four games.
In terms of scoring, Thomas gives the Nets insurance as Brooklyn’s ‘Big 3’ of Kyrie Irving, James Harden, and Kevin Durant have become incapable of staying on the floor due to injuries over the past year. With the departures of Spencer Dinwiddie and Caris LeVert, he’ll be an immediate spark off the bench for Brooklyn’s second unit.
Thomas’ lapses and lack of effort on the defensive side of the ball are troublesome, but will it have that great of an impact on an already underwhelming defense by the Nets?
As a team, Brooklyn tied with the New Orleans Pelicans for the 7th worst defensive rating in the league at 113.8 last season. They only managed to offset that number through a league-best offensive rating at 117.3 and the second-most points per game with 118.6 as a unit.
Heading into next season, it seems the Nets are planning on sticking to that same formula with the additions of Thomas and Patty Mills. Brooklyn fans should be thrilled at the idea of Thomas being able to learn from three of the greatest scorers in the current NBA game with Durant, Irving, and Harden as his teammates.
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