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Showing posts with label cam thomas. Show all posts
Showing posts with label cam thomas. Show all posts

Nets leading scorer reportedly available via trade




 The Nets are in true rebuilding mode. With loads of veterans possibly on the move before the trade deadline including: Dennis Schröder, Cam Johnson, Dorian Finney-Smith, and Bojan Bogdanovic, there's another name that will surprise Nets fans.

 



According to Sam Amick and The Athletic, Cam Thomas is available via trade. 

The Nets leading scorer is reportedly not untouchable.

Thomas and the Nets did not agree to a long-term extension. Thomas was underutilized by Steve Nash and Jacque Vaughn during his young career. 

Moving Cam Thomas would be an extremely unpopular move in Nets World, but it might be something they'll have to deal with since it's open trade season in Brooklyn.

Will Nets regret not hiring championship winning coach?



The Brooklyn Nets had an opportunity this off-season to bring in a head coach with C
championship winning experience. In fact, a coach that perhaps took a ring away from the 2020-21 Nets squad. That man, Mike Budenholzer, was ultimately not hired and remains a head coaching free agent. 

According to Shams Charania, Budenholzer, Phoenix assistant Kevin Young, and Kings assistant Jordi Fernandez were among the finalists for Brooklyn's head coaching gig. 

It's unclear why this Nets regime opted for a neophyte head coach in Fernandez as opposed to a well-respected veteran in Budenholzer.

It's likely that Budenholzer commanded a longer term and more lucrative contract that Joe Tsai and Sean Marks were willing to dole out. 

The Nets were actually paying three head coaches this year in Jacque Vaughn, Steve Nash and then ultimately hiring a new candidate to replace the interim Kevin Ollie.

Budenholzer is clearly the ready made option for a roster that has immediate pressure to win and maximize the prime windows of Mikal Bridges and his running mate Cam Johnson. 

The majority of the Nets fan base is in a wait and see mode with Fernandez. It's very likely that the entire coaching philosophy will be vastly different from the past few years. Ultimately, Fernandez's tenure is only going to be measured by wins and losses.

Anytime an organization makes a bold move and passes up on a championship winning coach, they better have shrewd plans in mind to find the next diamond in the rough along the sidelines. 

The NBA is ultimately a players league, and superstars win come playoff time. But the Nets were often at a talent deficit and coaching deficit the past few years after trading. Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. 

With out their own picks in the next few drafts, Marks is going to have to do the same creative maneuvering he did when he took over the Nets in 2016 in a similar position.

As for Hernandez, he's going to need to find a way to unlock Bridges and Cam Thomas to get this Brooklyn team back into the playoffs. 





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Nets beat Hawks again to inch closer to final play-in spot

 


Behind Mikal Bridges' 38 points and a scorching hot 15 or 32 from downtown, the Nets won their second consecutive game. 

Brooklyn is now two games behind Atlanta for the number 10 seed and the final play-in spot. 

Cam Johnson went for 23 while Nick Claxton scored 12 points and ripped down 13 rebounds. 

Without Cam Thomas and Ben Simmons in the lineup due to injuries, Brooklyn put on a show in front of the home crowd.

The Nets season has been in turmoil, but with a softer schedule coming up and two wins under the belts against the Hawks, life has been breathed backed into this often. Listless nets squad. 

Brooklyn hosts Memphis on Monday looking for its third straight win. 

Nets look like a Mickey Mouse organization in Orlando



 The Brooklyn Nets are not only a bad basketball team, they're just flat out gutless. 

Trailing by 29 points after three quarters to Orlando is just inexcusable. 

Kevin Ollie was supposed to tap into the inner hunter within each of his players. Ollie insisted that only those that had a hunting mentality would play. 

Well the effort and flat out performance was just unacceptable. 

On a night without Cam Thomas due to an ankle injury and Ben Simmons due to an inability to play back to backs, Mikal Bridges performance was absolutely atrocious. 

Ollie is not pushing any of the right buttons and the floundering Nets wasted an opportunity to close ground in the play – in race. 

The effort, the enthusiasm and pride are just lacking from this team. While Ollie is only in his third game as interim head coach, the Nets will likely be on a coaching hunt this summer with Mike Budenholzer as one of the top names on the market. 

Nets beat down decimated Grizzlies for Ollie's first win



 The Brooklyn Nets snapped a four game skid with a 111-86 win over Memphis on Monday night. 

The Nets fixed many of their defensive issues and kept the Grizzlies at bay as seven players reached double figures in scoring.

Even on a night the Nets came out on top, Cam Thomas turned his ankle and was not putting weight on his foot. Thomas told reporters after the game that he doesn't think the injury is as serious as the injury he suffered earlier this year, but it's not great news nonetheless 

It's almost certain that Thomas will not be available on Tuesday night in a back to back against Orlando and the team already ruled out Simmons for playing for a second consecutive night.

It's been a feel good night for Brooklyn, but the Nets will need more than one win to catapult them back into the playoffs conversation. 

Dream scenario for Brooklyn Nets revealed

 


The Brooklyn Nets made a major move on Monday following the All-Star break, relieving head coach Jacque Vaughn of his duties. 

The Nets( 21-33) were underachieving in the first half of the year and closed out the first 54 games with a 50-point drubbing at the hands of the Boston Celtics at TD Garden Arena.

That game was the straw that broke the camel's back. Sean Marks and Joe Tsai, in consultation with team leaders, including Mikal Bridges, decided to make a coaching change.

Vaughn unsuccessfully tried to carry over Steve Nash's freelance and free-flowing offense that worked so beautifully with Kevin Durant, Kyrie Irving and James Harden. Now, without superstar talent, the offense was inexplicably built around Ben Simmons, who could never stay healthy. 

The Nets should have been a top flight defensive team, but Vaughn decided to employ a drop defense that had catastrophic results. 

Bridges and other players were looking for clearly defined roles as Vaughn constantly tinkered with starting rotations. 

Now, as the Nets look to the remaining 28 games of the year, it appears as if assistant coach, Kevin Ollie, who joined Vaughn stuff this year, will be name the interim coach. 

Brooklyn will likely cast a wide net this summer in an exhaustive coaching search. Expect Mike Budenholzer to be atop that list. 

Giannis Antetokounmpo's former coach could be the biggest recruiting tool for prospective free agents or superstar trade targets. Things haven't been exactly sunny in paradise in Milwaukee, as Doc Rivers taking over for Adrian Griffin has seen some growing pains. 

The dream scenario for Brooklyn Nets fans is for Antetokounmpo to return this time as a hero in the borough and not public enemy number one. Perhaps the Greek freak will see that life without Bud isn't exactly all it's cut out to be. 

Short-handed Nets shellacked by Cavs in latest embarrassing loss



 The Brooklyn Nets had only eight available players on Thursday after the trade deadline passed.

With Spencer Dinwiddie and Royce O'Neal no longer part of the equation, Brooklyn wasn't even able to keep a close against Donovan, Mitchell and company.

Mitchell had 27, while Mikal Bridges had 26 and Cam Thomas 17. 

The Nets look like a team that is going to have a very rough second half of the schedule. The Cavaliers are the hottest team in the entire NBA, winners of 16 of their last 17 contests. 

Sean Marks did unload a pair of expiring contracts and the only significant move was bringing in Dennis Schröder. 

Brooklyn looks like a team that is stumbling into the All-Star break and will need a hard reset this summer.

While the fan base is clamoring for superstar talent back on the team, Jacque Vaughn will need to find a way to stack some wins and avoid an NBA lottery situation where the Nets don't even own their own pics. 

Curry takes over Brooklyn as Warriors down lackluster Nets

 


Not since the final two seasons at the IZOD Center in the Meadowlands and the two seasons to follow at The Prudential Center in Newark, have opposing fans taken over a home arena the way they have at Barclays Center this season.

Last month, it was Knicks fans chanting Jalen Brunson for MVP in a comeback win and now it was Steph Curry stans soaking up his 29 points.

Cam Thomas and Mikal Bridges combined to go 9 of 36 from the field for just 31 points. The Nets shot just 38.2 percent from the field and 31 percent from deep.

Nic Claxton was ejected with a flagrant foul 2, Lonnie Walker IV left with hamstring tightness and Jacque Vaughn refused to use Trendon Watford or Harry Giles off the bench. 

It was all around ugly for Brooklyn. While the stands in Brooklyn are filled with fans, the enthusiasm for the Nets is pailing in comparison to the roars for opposing players.

The deadline is fast approaching and with unrest in Nets World, fans are clamoring for Sean Marks to bring some excitement into an arena that has been comatose due to an inferior product on the court. 

It's time for Marks to trade a Net fan favorite




 The clock is striking midnight on Nic Claxton. Set to to become an unrestricted free agent this summer, it's expected the center will earn $20-$25 million per year, whether he resigns with the Nets or not. 

It's pretty clear that it is Claxton's preference to remain in Brooklyn. But as the Nets look big picture and possibly try to get into the big star hunting mode, Claxton would tie up a lot of the salary cap space and preclude them from taking on major superstars. 

As much as Claxton has been a homegrown Net and has grown up before Nets fans' eyes, the lack of flexibility of the team will have with extending him long-term, coupled with the fact that is offensive game has plateaued, it makes it attractive for Sean Marks to consider moving him. 

It's not a popular opinion, and one that I'm sure Net fans will push back on significantly.  But if Brooklyn wants to maximize this window with Mikal Bridges under a team friendly contract as well as rising star Cam Thomas, adding a legitimate third star player won't happen easily with Claxton still on the roster. 

The trade deadline is this Thursday and things are sure to change by the minute if not the second, but don't be surprised if Claxton is a name that is coveted by several teams and Marks at least takes phone calls on him. 

Ben Simmons scoreless in return to Philly, Nets steamroll Sixers



 The Nets built a 16-point first quarter lead and never looked back. Ben Simmons, who was scoreless and didn't attempt a shot in the game, made his impact felt in other areas with nine rebounds and five assists in 14 minutes. 

Brooklyn's offense was humming with Simmons pushing the pace and finding open shooters. Cam Thomas went for 40, Mikal Bridges 23 and Lonnie Walker IV 20. 

The splashed through 20 threes and dished out 35 assists. It's clear that a healthy Simmons has the Nets playing at a different level, but given his injury history it's hard for the team to put any faith in the point forward staying healthy.

Brooklyn plays again on Monday in a nationally televised game against Golden State.

Nets nearly blow 28-point lead to Houston, escape with narrow victory

 


Another Nets nightmare almost played out again in Saturday night. After jumping out to a 28 point first half lead, Brooklyn gave nearly all of it back.

It was the latest in a slew of games where the Nets jumped out early and shrunk in big moments.

Jacque Vaughn's crew was lackluster, committing careless turnovers and showing Houston to chip away at the lead. 

Cam Thomas popped off for 37, Mikal Bridges and Dorian Finney-Smith added 19 apiece. 

Brooklyn welcomes Houston to Barclays Friday looking for two in a row. 

No Sleep in Brooklyn: Nets are becoming the butt of every joke



There aren't many smiles right now in Nets World, but the outsiders are laughing at Brooklyn's futility. A record of 4-17 over the last 21 games is not just bad, it's downright embarrassing. 

Not since the 0-18 start to the 2009-10 season where the franchise was playing the string out in New Jersey have things looked this bad. 

Yes, there was a rebuild under Kenny Atkinson in Brooklyn, not one but two failed Big Three star experiments. But at those three junctures the Nets defined a direction, no matter how misguided it was. 

All-in for three aging stars, all-in for three prime stars with supersized egos and break it all down to reset the organization and the culture. 

Brooklyn now find itself in NBA purgatory. With Houston owning the Nets picks and swaps through the 2027 NBA Draft, there is no incentive for the Nets to tank. 

If you look up and down the roster, it's hard to fathom how this team could be a whopping ten games under .500 just after the midway point of the year. The Nets don't have overwhelming superstar talent like they've had in years past, but this roster should be good enough to be around or above the .500 mark and avoiding a play-in type scenario. 

As things stand now, Brooklyn is fighting tooth and nail with Atlanta just to be in the play-in and that's with Mikal Bridges, Cam Thomas and the rest of the supporting cast.

Where do the Nets turn from here? 

Big game hunting in the form of Zach LeVine or Dejounte Murray are possible scenarios with the latter being a more feasible option and better fit. 

Do the Nets lurk in the weeds and wait for the next disgruntled superstar to ask out or be traded and make a play for him?

If that's the case, Marks will need to resupply his draft stock in a hurry to make it happen. The reality is, the more the losses pile up, the worse things look in Brooklyn and for Jacque Vaughn. 

It's never easy trading away not one, not two, but three superstar players, but that's the situation that Brooklyn is in, searching for a direction, hope and positive vibes. 

After a 13-10 start, punctuated by a win over Kevin Durant and the Suns, the Nets looked to be a fun, selfless team that could surprise a lot of people this season. 

From that point on, everything that could have gone wrong, has gone wrong. 

Mired in a brutal stretch of basketball, the Nets are looking for leadership. Vaughn's words seem to fall of deaf ears and the roster is filled with too many nice guys. Bridges, Thomas or the rest aren't the alpha-type of personalities that will get in guy's faces to challenge them.

The results are what they are and until the Nets find their footing and get things right, the pressure cooker is going to be piping hot for Vaughn, Sean Marks and Joe Tsai to get things right before they go from bad to worse in the borough of Brooklyn. 





Nets suffer another crushing last second loss to Minnesota

 


Mikal Bridges had two free throws to tie the game with 2.4 seconds remaining, but couldn't deliver.

The Nets top scorer missed the first attempt and intentionally missed the second with Brooklyn down 96-94. A lane violation by Dorian Finney-Smith and failure to foul on the ensuing position was all she wrote. 

Brooklyn showed grit and fight by coming back from double digits and taking haymaker after haymaker from the Timberwolves. Karl Anthony Towns led all scorers with 27, Anthony Edwards had 24 while Cam Thomas paced the Nets with 25 and Bridges added 21. 

Minnesota poured in 50 points in the paint and Brooklyn had difficulty dealing with the size and physicality the Timberwolves brought. 

Despite a spirited effort and comeback attempt, the Nets are now 4-17 in their last 21 games.

Brooklyn travels to Houston on Saturday night to face the Rockets looking to end a three-game skid.

Fireable offense: Jacque Vaughn, Nets blow another late lead in loss to Knicks



Watching the Brooklyn Nets is like the movie Groundhog Day: different day, same ending.

Replace Billy Murray's funny moments with head scratching Jacque Vaughn coaching decisions and frustration from Nets fans.  

The Nets were outscored 32-18 in the fourth quarter against the Knicks at Barclays after blowing an 18-point lead on Sunday against the Clippers and ending that game being outgunned 22-0. 

On Tuesday, Mikal Bridges carried the day offensively with 36 points, Cam Johnson added 19 and Nic Claxton had 8 points and 17 rebounds.

Johnson started the first quarter strong, but he missed a potential game tying three inside of ten seconds and faded in the second half.

Spencer Dinwiddie played 19 minutes, dealt out three assists and grabbed zero rebounds and produced no points.

Julis Randle and Jalen Brunson poured in 30 apiece to help New York grind out a victory. 

The Nets have now blown double digit fourth quarter leads against the Heat, Blazers, Clippers and Knicks over the last week.

Vaughn's team has gone through offensive dry spell after dry spell and his lineup combinations are not producing desirable results. 

The type of loss the Nets suffered on Tuesday night: a nationally televised against a bitter area rival with another late collapse is grounds to make a coaching change. 

Nets do unthinkable, blow 18-point lead to Clippers

 


The Brooklyn Nets were in full control of the Los Angeles Clippers until they weren't. 

After building a 18-point lead with seconds left in the third quarter, Brooklyn watched that advantage not not only evaporate, but eventually turned it into an 11-point Los Angeles win. 

Mikal Bridges led the way with 26, Cam Thomas had 20, while James Harden paced the Clippers with 24 and 10, while Kawhi Leonard added 21.

Ty Lue coached circles around Jacque Vaughn, who allowed the Clippers to stage a 22-0 run to end the game.

It's inexplicable some of the lineup changes that Vaughn made as well as his lack of commanding the huddle and coordinating a semblance of an organized offense.

The Nets have now squandered three winnable games over the last week-plus by losing to Portland, Miami and now the Los Angeles Clippers with a Thunder win preceding that stretch and Laker win on Friday night.

Had the Nets made a few lineup adjustments and different play calls, but they may be riding a six game win streak instead of 4-14 record over the last 18 games. 

Aside from Ben Simmons, Brooklyn is relatively healthy and injuries are no longer an excuse but poor coaching decisions are preventing an underdog Nets squad from staying out of the loss column and in the playoff race. 


Nets make franchise history with stunning win over Lakers



The Nets looked to be on their way to a 15th loss in 18 games early on at Crypto.com Arena, but they flipped the script on the Hollywood Lakers and turned a slow start into an explosive second half.

Brooklyn outscored Los Angeles 38-22 in the third quarter with Cam Thomas pacing the Nets with 33, Spencer Dinwiddie coming alive for 19 and Nic Claxton notching an impressive 22 point, 14 rebound double-double in the contest.

LeBron James had 24 points and 11 rebounds, Anthony Davis had 26 and 12 boards, while DeAngelo Russell poured in 20.

For Brooklyn, Lonnie Walker IV and Dennis Smith Jr. had spirited efforts off the bench with 15 and 11, respectively, to go along with a great deal of hustle plays.

The Nets earned their biggest win in franchise history at the Lakers home court with a 130-112 triumph.

Brooklyn will be back in the same arena on Sunday to take on the Clippers as it looks for a Los Angeles sweep. 

The Nets have a great coach on staff, but it's not Jacque Vaughn




Jacque Vaughn may have signed a multi-year extension less than a year ago on February 21, 2023, but early returns for his tenure as head coach have been less than promising. 

Yes, Vaughn was head man when the Nets won 12 straight games last season , including an 18 -2 stretch with Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving leading the way. However, everything went south from that point on with Vaughn. 

The Nets stumbled into the sixth seed in the conference in the aftermath of the Irving and Durant trades.  Brooklyn was swept with relative ease by the Philadelphia 76ers in the first round of the 2023 NBA playoffs.  

Vaughn also took over as the interim Nets head coach back in 2020, during the NBA bubble season with the team being swept out of the first round by the defending NBA champion Toronto Raptors. 

Vaughn has an 0-8 playoff record and has been reluctant to play young budding star Cam Thomas, whose offensive prowess is unmatched, but his defense needs some improvement. 

Even veteran point guard Spencer Dinwiddie has spent critical moments on the bench and looks visibly discontent with his role on the team. 

The Brooklyn Nets started the season as one of the surprise stories in the NBA at 13-10, but have gone 3-14 since that point. 

The assistant coach that the team has seemed to respond to and has a great understanding of opponents is none other than Kevin Ollie. Ollie won the 2014 NCAA National Championship with his alma mater, UConn.

Ollie was investigated by the NCAA for compliance issues and ultimately was relieved of his duties as head coach. 

A long-time NBA veteran, Ollie joined Vaughn's staff this season. With the Nets experiencing a talent deficit and coaching deficit, a change might be needed in a leadership position and Ollie can more than fill those shoes. 

Nets suffer ugly loss on foreign soil to Cavs in Paris


 

Donovan Mitchell stole the show in the NBA's Paris Game 2024 with 45 points, 12 rebounds and six assists as the Cavaliers cruised to a 111-102 victory over the Brooklyn Nets. 

Once again, the Nets were lackluster offensively with careless turnovers, poor shot selection and lack of ball movement among their many problems. 

Mikal Bridges tallied 26 points, Cam Thomas 26 and Lonnie Walker IV 20. The Nets surrendered 43 free throw attempts to Cleveland and provided little resistance on the defensive side of the ball. 

Former Nets Caris LeVert and Jarrett Allen tallied 21 and 12 points, respectively. The Nets had a fun trip overseas in an international showcase via social media, but chock up another one in the loss column. 

With Paris Fashion Week around the corner, no player was happier to up his Instagram game than Simmons. 

Simmons told reporters this week that he was 'close' to returning but when pressed on when he replied simply with: 'no timetable.' 

Simmons' agent, Bernard Lee, detailed his client's ongoing progress and recovery from this back ailment and while offering a reason for optimism,  fans are skeptical of the Nets' point guard's prospect of returning healthy. 

Paris will host the 2024 Summer Olympics and while Simmons plans to play with Team Australia, Nets fans are hoping that's not the next time you'll see him fully healthy on the basketball court. 

As for the Nets, the head scratching rotations from Jacque Vaughn continued as he waited until the team was buried by 20-plus points early to insert Thomas and Walker IV into the lineup. 

The Nets are in a world of trouble with a tough schedule ahead ready to bury the already 16-22 struggling club. 

It's clear that the Nets should look to sell off any win-now assets unless Sean Marks can pull a rabbit out of a hat and acquire a game-changing talent like Dejounte Murray to give Brooklyn a much needed shot in the arm. 

The Nets travel to Miami on January 15 to play the Heat. 

Nets loss to lowly Blazers signals selling season is upon us



 The Brooklyn Nets lost yet another game to an NBA bottom feeder in the Portland Trailblazers on Friday night. 

Mikal Bridges came up clutch with a game tying basket with just seconds remaining in the fourth quarter but Malcolm Brogdon drained a pair of threes that put Portland ahead for good in overtime. 

Bridges went for 42-points but the Nets could not best a young Blazers squad led by Afernee Simons who dropped 38. 

Cam Thomas played only 18 minutes and was not relied upon down the stretch as Jacque Vaughn went with a defensive-oriented lineup by becoming Thomas and Spencer Dinwiddie. 

The Nets now sit at a measly record of 16-21 and are sinking in a crowded Eastern Conference.

With a murderous schedule ahead, it begs the question, will the Nets be sellers ahead of the deadline?

It's pretty clear with how things have transpired over the last month in Brooklyn that the Nets and Sean Marks will be in selling mode. 

Look for pieces like Royce, O'Neale, Dinwiddie, Dorian Finnie-Smith and possibly Nic Claxton to be on the move. 

The Nets will be in Paris on an international stage to match up with the Cleveland Cavaliers starting on Thursday. 

The Nets face a daunting schedule over the next 17 games before the All-Star break and it might be time to start floating out rotation players to be on the move in order for Marks to recoup some draft picks for the future. 




Nets snap five-game losing streak with shocking win over Thunder



 The Brooklyn Nets led by as many as 32 points on Friday night at Barclays Center against Oklahoma City before surviving with a 9-point victory. 

The Nets losing streak ended at five games as Nic Claxton and Spencer Dinwiddie added 23 apiece. Cam Thomas chipped in 19 and Mikal Bridges 17. 

Brooklyn got off to a strong start in the first half but stumbled to the finish line in the second half.

Sloppy execution down the stretch saw Brooklyn's lead shrink to only six points, but It held on for a 124- 115 win.

The Nets are ecstatic to be back in the win column and head coach Jacque Vaughn can loosen his collar a bit. 

Brooklyn welcomes in the Portland Trailblazers to Barclays Center on Sunday looking for its second consecutive victory. 


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