3 Cam Thomas trades to kickstart the Nets rebuild and elevate NBA contenders

Well ... this isn’t how it was supposed to go.

The Brooklyn Nets made multiple moves this summer to position themselves for a rebuild to get their organization back on track after the last few aimless seasons. They traded their best player to the Knicks for a boatload of draft picks and subsequently moved some sexy-looking future draft assets for control of their own draft in the short term, including 2025. This is all designed to maximize the return on losing as many games as possible, earning them a top draft pick for someone like Cooper Flagg or Ace Bailey.

Now that we’re almost a quarter of the way through the season, the Nets look downright ... respectable? They are currently 7-10 and hold the No. 9 seed in the Eastern Conference, leaving eight different teams below them in the standings between both conferences. That’s eight draft picks that have better odds to be at the top of the draft than Brooklyn’s. We certainly can’t have that.

Who do we have to “blame” for this hot start — a relative term, mind you — and hole they’ve dug themselves? Well, it’s a team game, so it can be shared among many. Dennis Schroder has leveraged another strong summer of international play into 17 points per game on 40 percent from 3 and new coach Jordi Fernandez has the team moving the ball to the tune of a top-five assist percentage and top-10 offense in the league. They've also gotten underrated contributions from Dorian Finney-Smith, Jalen Wilson and Cameron Johnson.

But today, we’re going to focus on the dastardly scoring prowess of one Cam Thomas.

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Cam Thomas is failing as a tank commander when he could be helping a contender

As reported by The Athletic, Cam Thomas is considered quite gettable around the league. It makes sense, as he's already due for a pay raise next summer and could net them an asset or two that more closely aligns with the timeline of their next franchise cornerstone. He's also just a productive player that may be helping the Nets win too damn often.

Thomas has been a polarizing player throughout his career. The term "gunner" doesn't get used to describe him for no reason. His usage rate has been in the 90th percentile for the last three seasons and he's putting up 18 shots per game again this season. He has put up almost 20 shots per 36 minutes in his career and has never exactly been characterized as an astute passer.

Thomas is just 23 years old, however, and has shown some tangible signs of growth in his fourth season. Not only is he putting up a career high in scoring (24.8 points per game), but he is hitting almost 39 percent of his 3s on a career-high attempt rate (7.4 per game) and is right around 60 percent in true shooting, which is another career high. Though hitting tough shots in the midrange will always be his bread and butter, he has decreased these attempts in favor of career highs in percentage of shots at the rim and from 3 as well.

Perhaps most importantly, he is slowly starting to pick better spots to find open teammates for quality looks. His assist rate is up to 18.2 percent (you guessed it: career high) and he's making a raw 35.4 passes for 5.9 potential assists per game. These aren't outlandish numbers when compared to the rest of the league but are significant steps forward for Thomas in ensuring he isn't totally predictable with the ball.

The defense is a tough fit in many places, as he's only 6-foot-3 and has never shown to be a game changer on that end. He still leaves something to be desired there, but every player has their warts. If he was a perfect player, the Nets would be more interested in keeping him, no?

One of the main reasons for his availability in trade is his contract status. He is making just over $4 million this season and will hit restricted free agency next summer, resulting in a level of uncertainty moving forward. He and the Nets failed to come to an agreement on a contract extension this past summer, so that could mean his expectations are relatively high. But his small cap hit this season makes him a bit easier to fit into trades for contenders with bloated payrolls.

As a small guard who excels as a tough shot maker but isn't great at creating advantages for others or defending, he falls into an archetype that most would peg as a microwave scorer off the bench for a contender. He's unlikely to have the ball in his hands a lot over superstars around the league, but his impeccable scoring ability can be critical for moments when those stars are resting or drawing multiple defenders.

With that in mind, here are some teams who fancy themselves contenders who may benefit from his services.

3. Milwaukee Bucks

The Bucks have recently been linked to a couple of Nets players, including Thomas. Milwaukee got off to a real rough start this season but are starting to show signs of life, having won six of their last seven with reinforcements on the way.

The team is strapped for assets to trade but does still have one remaining first-round pick available to move. With all the noise around their early-season performance and pressure to compete with Giannis Antetokounmpo on the roster, they could be tempted to ship it out in a trade.

The Bucks are struggling with depth and an ability to score, particularly with Antetokounmpo off the court, where they're scoring just 111.5 points per 100 possessions (31st percentile) per Cleaning the Glass. Thomas provides a certified bucket-getter who can take the scoring load off their stars when they're out to keep the offense afloat.

He'd be a difficult defensive fit in the backcourt with Damian Lillard but would likely be staggered with him often and the backline defense of Giannis and Brook Lopez is still a force to be reckoned with, perhaps easing the burden.

Khris Middleton, talented as he is, has shown that it's going to be difficult to count on him to be on the court consistently moving forward. The acquisition of Thomas could be as much a security blanket to cover for these times as it is to juice the bench when the team is healthy.

The Bucks could go scorched-earth to acquire Thomas and Dorian Finney-Smith, but this would require moving on from Lopez or Middleton due to their second apron restrictions, so we abstained in this instance.

The Nets, as will be the case in most of these scenarios, are motivated by a juicy-looking draft asset here. Because they're also including young big man Day'Ron Sharpe, the Nets receive a very lightly protected first-round pick from Milwaukee in 2031 that looks like it could be gold. If the Bucks anticipate Giannis still being on the team at that point, it becomes an acceptable price to pay. If not ... such is the gamble you take on dealing future draft assets.

Is this the type of package the Bucks want to fire the last bullet in their chamber for? That's debatable, but when you're working with scarce resources, sometimes you have to settle a bit.

Sharpe provides an additional big body that is also due for a new contract. He'd function as useful depth in the short term and if he hits on his potential, could be a serviceable piece in the future as Brook Lopez declines or departs.

The Nets would also have a bit of work to do to get back under the luxury tax after this deal, but it shouldn't be terribly difficult with the small amount of salary needing to be shed. This could even be expanded to a three-team deal to do it immediately if need be.

2. Phoenix Suns

The Phoenix Suns have started the season on basically the opposite trajectory as the Bucks. After a hot start, they're on a five-game losing streak due in large part to the absence of Kevin Durant and Bradley Beal, who've been out with injuries.

One of the things that has reared its head at times during this stretch is the team's struggles to score when their stars aren't on the court. Devin Booker has been double- and triple-teamed while the supporting cast has struggled to make shots, resulting in some ugly performances.

Like the Bucks, they're almost out of tradeable draft equity and are above the second apron. They do have a couple more tradeable contracts available, though, giving them slightly more optionality.

This obviously looks quite similar to the Bucks deal. With some major challenges at the center position, the Suns use their last first-round pick to ensure they get a shot maker and another option in the middle.

The acquisition of these two young players provides depth and upside in areas they had previously lacked. In addition, the arrival of Thomas could make it a lot easier to move Grayson Allen for more help in the frontcourt, which would be huge.

Thomas is unlikely to be in closing lineups for the Suns but their Big Three has a pretty checkered injury history so he'll have plenty of chances to eat. The Suns rely quite heavily on superior shot making to win games and that is right up Thomas's alley.

Sharpe is the wild card that makes this worth considering for Phoenix. He has been hampered by injuries in his short career but has shown impressive flashes as a rim-running and shot blocking center. Jusuf Nurkic has been kind of a mess this season, so having an option with upside who can be re-signed in restricted free agency this summer could be a boon for this team.

As with the Bucks trade, a distant first with only light protections from an older team going all-in for the present is a nice gamble for the Nets. More than anything, it could become an even more valuable trade asset in a few years when the Nets are looking to be competitive again.

1. Denver Nuggets

If you're sensing a bit of a theme here, you'd be correct. The Denver Nuggets are a title contender who could really use some more scoring punch off their bench. In fact, their bench currently has the worst offensive rating in the league.

Like the other teams listed, Denver is also out most of their draft picks and can't take on extra salary in a trade. But hey, they've got that 2031 first-round pick available, and you know how much we're liking those here.

We have a pretty simple swap here. Dario Saric is on a contract that is not too appetizing, but it's a small amount and the Nets will have quite a bit of cap room this summer as it is.

Because the Nuggets aren't getting another asset like Sharpe in this deal, perhaps the protections on the pick would be just a bit heavier than the other deals.

Thomas provides a scoring spark that the Nuggets are sorely missing from their reserves. He can create shots from nothing and this is a useful skill when Nikola Jokic is not on the floor. He also provides some insurance in case Jamal Murray just can't get his act together to ensure somebody else can create a shot.

The Nuggets are scoring a paltry 94.5 points per 100 possessions with Jokic off the floor, according to Cleaning the Glass. This is ... bad. Thomas puts a ton of pressure on the defense, ranking top-15 in the league in drives per game and top-25 in free throw attempts per game.

It would be interesting to see his fit with Russell Westbrook, but Westbrook would at least provide defensive size and energy to help compensate for Thomas's shortcomings on that end.

Like with the other contenders on this list, this uses one of the last real assets the Nuggets have to bolster their title window. Is Thomas enough to be worth that? Maybe not, but capitalizing on Jokic's prime should be at the top of their to-do list.

All told, with his elite shot-making ability and low salary figure, there is sure to be no shortage of suitors for the services of Cam Thomas. With his unique skillset and awkward fit in many situations, the challenge will be finding a deal that is of mutually beneficial cost for both sides. Regardless, the Nets would be remiss if they did not prioritize unloading guys like Thomas, Finney-Smith and Johnson before they bank too many more wins and can't catch the cellar-dwellers in the standings.