Brooklyn Nets’ Cam Thomas FIRES BACK at ‘Ball Hog’ Criticism | Fans MUST See

Brooklyn Nets’ Cam Thomas FIRES BACK at ‘Ball Hog’ Criticism | Fans MUST See

Heat. Heat. [Music] [Music] [Music] What is going on Brooklyn Net fans? Hello everyone and welcome back here into the show. Connor Long, Gary, Dylan, all with you guys right here on this Saturday, July 19th, 2025. Make sure you smash that like button and it’s subscribe on your way into the building. It’s completely free and it helps us all grow significantly here on the show through all your questions, comments, thoughts in the chat. We will get to those. We appreciate all of your support as always coming to you guys with a threeperson panel today, a simalcasted stream on Dylan and Gary’s channel, of course, the BK nets podcast and my channel, the Brooklyn Boys Show. So, appreciate you all joining us right here on this Saturday afternoon. Hope everyone has had a great start to their weekend, a great start to their Saturday thus far. Gary, how you doing? Happy Saturday. And boy, a lot to get into today. It’s uh No, it’s good to It’s good to be back. Uh it’s been a few days. Um some Cam Thomas news, so I don’t want to waste too much time. Follow me and Dylan at Nets Press. Check us out. We go live several times a week. Uh nothing but nothing but nets. Uh I’m I’m struggling today. I I didn’t sleep last night. BK Nothing But Nets podcast. Check out me and Well, Gary, you didn’t sleep at all. Yeah. No, I was I was Yeah, I didn’t. I’m telling you, uh the side job for him, he’s Batman. I’m convinced. Guy just doesn’t sleep. Nah, I’m trying to sleep as little as possible. Dylan, what’s going on? Uh, nothing much, man. Just uh doing the usual, fighting people on Twitter. Um, but yeah, appreciate you guys for having me on. Uh, I’m excited to get into this debate today, especially with the topic that we have. Uh, so ready whenever you guys are. Definitely. So, yesterday, I mean, at this time yesterday, it was a chill day. was the Nets final summer league game against the 76ers, which we all admittedly, and we’ll have no shame sharing this on the show, all three of us did not watch the game because we had no interest in watching a combination of Justin Hamilton, uh, Tyrese Samuel, Caleb Daniels start for Brooklyn. And you know, Dylan mentioned it backstage, Brooklyn already load managing the rookies, which is never a good sign to kick off their career in summer league. Yes, load management in summer league. All five rookies alongside Drew Tim and some other notable names did not play yesterday during the summer league game, but it was expected to be a chill day in Nets World. All the reporters coming back from Vegas. And then at about this time, you know, a little a little after this time yesterday, we look up on Twitter and Cam Thomas is getting into a bit of a scuffle with NBA reporter Zack Low. He takes a bit of a shot at Shawn Marks. So, Zack Low was on a podcast and he kind of revealed around the league how Cam Thomas is viewed by other teams and he said, quote, “The consensus on Cam Thomas, if there is one, and he’s got some fans and he’s got some mega detractors, but the consensus is kind of like an empties cal empty calorieshog.” And then Cam Thomas quote tweeted that and followed it up with the consensus. FU and the consensus. This is most likely the same consensus teams who can’t guard me and send double teams from jump ball. Why are we double teaming a guy who’s not that good? Make it make sense, please. We’ll get into his remarks surrounding Shawn Marks and his other comments about Zack Low in a little bit, but Gary, initial thoughts on those comments straight from Cam Thomas. Look, he he’s right. Nobody wants to guard him, right? Like nobody ever complained about having to get guard Cam Johnson. Nobody, you know, in in in in the locker room and he says, “Oh, I want to guard Cam Thomas.” He’s right about that. So, you got to double him, right? And he demands a double team, especially on the Nets where there’s no one that can create their own shot. He’s double teamed a lot and he he fought well a lot better this year recognizing the double teams and stuff, but he’s right. Nobody wants to guard him. He’s a bucket getter. I would He’s built like a fire hydrant. I wouldn’t want to guard him, right? Like, let me let me guard let me guard Cam Johnson. That’ll be an easier night for me. Um he’s a he’s a certified bucket getter. That being said, that’s all he does. And you can put the stats next to, you know, uh what Brunson was doing at this age or what Spider Mitchell did last year and and I get it. But the narrative is already kind of written on him. Fair or not, it’s kind of already written on him and that he’s a one-dimensional what do they call empty calorie bucket getter. He’s going to score 25 for a bad team. And that’s kind of how he’s viewed throughout the league. And that’s what I’m saying. I don’t know where we go with him from now. I don’t think he’s a part of our future. And I’m not saying I don’t want him to be a part of our future. I don’t think he is. I don’t think Shawn Marks views him that way. I would love to keep him as a as as a secondary option. I just don’t think the Nets view him that way. So, if he’s untradable, I don’t know what we do with him. He I don’t think he’s going to sign a three-year $45 million contract. I don’t think he’s going to short himself like that. I think he’s a better chance of signing and I don’t mean to cut you off there. I think he has a better chance of signing a threeyear $45 million contract than a one-year $15 million deal. What would you do like three year? I It’s a tough situation because I I’d rather just average 25 points a game and then test free agency again next year. You know what I’m saying? There’s no one with any money. No, but here’s the thing. For someone who’s just coming off a year where he played 25 games, I think he wants some security on a contract because if he’s going into this year on a one-year deal and he gets hurt and he plays 25 games, this guy’s looking at $67 million in unrestricted free agency next offseason, I think Cam Thomas would rather take a 2-year $30 million deal, for example, than a one-year $20 million contract. What you’re saying is totally fair, right? But if you’re Cam Thomas, you see what Quickley got and what Jaylen Green got and what all these guys got and you say, “I’m a better scoreer than these guys who are also dimensional scorers and I’m a better score than all of them.” They’re getting 30 million. I’m not locking in to 15 million a year. I I’ll play more than I hear you. I hear you. I say the one thing I would say though about Quickly is he at least has the playmaking aspect. Like he got traded to Toronto and was putting up a couple of double doubles here and there with him. He got the contract before he did that though. I Yeah. And and that’s the thing though, right? And and and this is the problem though with a lot of fans is they use these comparisons of contracts. Like I’m getting it all over my comments on Instagram. Well, Quickly got 32 and a half million. Well, Goar got 35 million and he just plays defense. Okay. And look how shitty those teams are. Those are not. Why would I want to give out that Yeah. This isn’t this isn’t a participation trophy where somebody plays similar to you in terms of value and you get the same thing. You know, if you want to be greedy and you want that money, go play elsewhere. Yeah. I could say to that Herb Herb Jones is a two-way player and he makes 17 million a year. So should Cam Thomas get half that, you know, like that’s what I’m saying. You can play the comparison game all you want. It doesn’t matter about what another player has. It matters about the market that’s available currently. And the fact of the matter is nobody has money for him. So as Conor McGregor once said, you you you’ll do as you’re told. You’re either going to get the the money that we’re giving you or you’re going to come back in a qualifying offer and you can either be traded or or resign or leave in free agency. Either way, you’re going to be a net this upcoming season unless if you’re traded. Absolutely. Now, I want to kind of touch on what he said about Shawn Marks kind of a second jab at at Zack Low. He said, “Last time speaking on some Empty calories.” First off, we were the fifth or sixth team in the East before my injury and trades. Can’t control what the GM want to do with the team. Dot dot dot. Second ball hog. I was second on the team in assists, not counting the point guards traded away and traded for. So Cam Thomas, not counting the playmakers. Yeah, I mean that’s not your best argument. Take Dennis Shruder who was first in assist on the team. Take Cam Johnson, take all those guys out of the equation. Take Dorian Finny Smith out of the equation and he would rank second in assist. But in all seriousness, an interesting jab there towards uh general manager Shawn Marks. What I have to say overall on Cam Thomas’s game is this has been his game since high school when he became, you know, Oills all-time leading scorer in high school from the time he went to LSU to now when he went to the NBA. And I think there’s a val and I think that’s a valuable asset. But I think the thing that’s ultimately going to separate Cam Thomas from a bunch of other guards in the league, there are guys who can score just like Cam Thomas, I think Donovan Mitchell is up there. Well, Donovan Mitchell is not, you know, very stingy on defense. He’s not a top defender in the league, but his defense kind of evens out compared to Cam Thomas who’s more of a liability on defense. I think the biggest thing for Cam Thomas throughout his career is if he can get you three, four assists a game. And then his defense, you don’t need to be a great defender, but kind of even out and be middle of the road where you’re not a liability, Dylan. Yeah, and I’ve said this all along. I’m not a I’m a person that values efficiencies and versatility. And when I say versatility, I mean a guy that can play numerous aspects of the game, not just a one-dimensional player. And at this moment in time, for the past four years, heading into year five, Cam Thomas has been a one-dimensional player. His only asset at an elite level is scoring. And even so, he does it inefficiently. I don’t want to hear excuses about bad teams, shot chucking, whatever it has to be. He’s an inefficient 23 point per game scorer heading into year five. That’s not anything that deserves pay. That that’s not anything that deserves franchise player. You know, this is a guy who can score as of right now. And until he shows a second aspect to his game at a star level, to me, he’s a onedimensional player that deserves 15 to 20 million a year. Gary, I I don’t disagree with any of that. I mean, it sucks that Jaylen It sucks for Cam Thomas that Jaylen Green and Emanuel quickly got overpaid. That sucks for him. But uh not even to cut you off, but that’s the thing, right? We’re saying overpay, but these are guys who were selected 20 plus picks ahead of him. Like it all it all matters on on where they get selected too because that only matters on day one. On day two is what he’s doing. Yeah. Contracts are based on on pick selection, right? You’re you’re you have a better chance of bringing back a guy that you got drafted, right? But the thing is is a rookie max for a guy selected third overall compared to a guy that got drafted 27th overall is millions apart. It’s not even close to the same in money. But when Draymond Green or Jaylen Brunson go into negotiations, does anyone say you were picked in the second round? No. That’s not You know what I’m saying? That’s only was also after his second contract. Draymond Green didn’t get a big contract after his rookie year cuz he was a late pick. You know what I mean? Like he you have to prove yourself. Like he has not proven to be I think he’d get $30 million a year. 25. Yeah. No, you’re right. I mean, if he was a top five pick, he’d be he’d be viewed totally differently. You’re right. Lo, I like that comment, too. It says, “The argument is Claxton is a onedimensional player, too.” I agree. And that’s why he doesn’t deserve $25 million. Does anyone like Clax? Does anyone like Yeah, not none of us likes the contract. I mean, it’s descending in value, which is nice. It makes it a more tradable contract, but at the end of the day, to be on a rebuilding team as a one-dimensional center who can’t score more than 10 points a game, nobody likes that contract. So, again, why should we do that for another one-dimensional player? Yeah, one bad contract should not be another bad contract. Like, we got to end the insanity at some point. Like, it’s a bad contract. We’re not going to keep doubling down, especially when you don’t have to. remember Detroit offered the same contract to Claxton and Claxton wanted to stay here so we just finagled with the with the with the term right but it was 99 million or whatever it was 98 million Detroit offered him the same exact contract or a million less it was basically the same contract and he wanted to stay here and we figured it out no one else is offering Cam Thomas that much else has the money to do that and that’s the thing too and people gave me a lot of for this over the last year and I’ve been saying this and I’ll back this Cam Thomas isn’t a guy that’s going to be on this team for another year and a half they don’t value him as the guy. People can’t seem to grasp this concept. This isn’t hate. This isn’t negativity. This is just facts. 2027 is the year they’re trying to build up cap space. Why are they going to give a guy $30 million for the next three, four years as he’s requesting when you’re trying to maximize your cap space to get guys who are 10 times better players than Cam Thomas’s in 2027? Like a similar deal that I think had this kind of the same thought process here with Cam Thomas that I think ultimately went up in flames was the Anthony Simons deal with the Portland Trailblazers. the guy who came in and his role was pretty much that. I mean, was he a bit of a better playmaker than Cam Thomas? Yes. But I mean, that’s not as high of a bar. That’s not a very high bar to set. He goes in after one good season in Portland, gets three years, $80 million, and now that whole contract went up in flames. He’s no longer even with the Trailblazers. So, I I think there are some interesting comps over the past few years that maybe haven’t gone all that all that well for maybe a one-dimensional playmaker. I I think Cam Thomas comes back to this team on a one-year deal, but I don’t think it’s as low as the qualifying offer. I think it’s like 8 $10 million 13 12. I Do you guys think there’s any chance he comes back on the $5.99 million qualifying offer? Not a chance. My thing is is if you’re going if he’s coming back for one year and he’s going to test his value, trade him because you’ve already pissed him off enough over the last five years, you know, he’s not resigning with you in free. Wouldn’t you want to hold him to the deadline though and see what he can do? I’d kind of put him up while his value is still high. He played 22 games last year. You don’t know if he’s going to be healthy by the trade deadline. And whether people want to believe that you think, “But don’t isn’t every other GM thinking the same thing, too?” Like, not really. Because if you have a guy who can score right away, making low money that you don’t have to give up an insane player for, I think a lot of teams are going to want to try and capitalize on that. He has the same agent as Jannisto Kmpo and Milwaukee’s had interest in him in the past. They can give up a guy making 10 million more than him, for instance, Koozma and two first round picks and probably get that done right away. I know nobody likes Koozma, neither do I. But if you look at his contract, it’s 22 million over the next two years that matches up with Michael Porter Jr. and it’s also a trade asset at the deadline that you can look to flip for an expiring contract. So, it wouldn’t surprise me if he comes back on on a one-year deal that if he’s looked to be traded for, cuz why would you want to risk somebody who is already publicly going head-to-head with people mentioning some of his weak inefficiencies to the game, who’s mentioning GM tactics on on trading players? Why are you going to want to take a risk on that for a guy who’s shown you in the past that he’s not happy here at times? Why take the risk? Why lose him for nothing when you can get something for him? Well, I feel like letting him walk wouldn’t really be I think you can add another restricted free agent, whether that be Josh Giddy. I I doubt Josh Giddy, but you know, a guy like Jonathan Kaminga perhaps. And I I I here’s the thing. I don’t know if the Nets are really enamored with Jonathan Kaminga and they think that he’s the guy and they want to give him a pretty significant contract to the caliber of maybe a hundred million $100 million total over four or five seasons. I what what do you think has a higher chance Dylan? The Nets pay Cam Thomas or the Nets pay Jonathan Kaminga? I would say Kaminga. And the only reason I say it is because he’s worth a little bit more than what Cam Thomas is. He’s 67. He has the same scoring upside just not in terms of the points per game at the moment. But he also, like I said, is a 67 wing, which is a position of need currently in Brooklyn, and he’s also same age with better defensive abilities. Uh he’s already shown in the playoffs that he can put up highc caliber games. He single-handedly won the Warriors a game last uh playoffs. I I I would take him any day of the week, even if it’s for two to three million more a year. At at most right now, I would give uh give Cam Thomas 18 to 21 million. The most I’d give Kaminga is 22 to 23. But again, I’m not giving any of these guys more than three-year deals. You know, I don’t think that these are two guys that are valued as long-term pieces on these teams currently. Kaminga has a lot to prove. Same with Cam Thomas. But the difference is is you have you just drafted three guards. you know, you don’t need Cam Thomas longterm as of right now. And they kind of showed that with this draft class. So, if there’s anybody that I think has a realistic chance of being paid a long-term deal for a similar price range to what they’re asking for, I think it would be Kaminga. Gary, is the qu Okay, so is the question what do I want the Nets to do or what do I think the Well, I think I think they’re going to go in in the direction of Kamega. At least they’re not going to keep Cam Thomas and you got to spend the money somewhere. So where would you like him to spend? Do you want to take on another bad contract to try to get a pick? They’re not going to Okay, then we got enough picks though, don’t we? I’m not against it. It just wouldn’t be my first option. We got more than enough picks, right? Like I’d rather go get the player now. So the question becomes the only player available is Kaminga. Really? Is Kaminga the guy you want? If not, what do we do with the money? Do we just give a bunch of guys one-year deals? We don’t really have roster space. I I don’t I don’t know. The roster construction here is really screwy. But what I I agree with Dylan, Cam Thomas is 100% not a part of the long-term plan. Like you guys, right? They never wanted him here in the first place, right? And he’s he overperformed as a scorer. You know, when he first got here like, “Wow, this guy can score.” And he he can, but he doesn’t fit in here. And if we could get him on a long-term deal for 15 million to 18 million, I would love that because then we could use him as a six-man. You’re not really overpaying him. Like that’s okay. That’s good pay for a six-man. That’s good. Great year as a sixman. He Who are you starting over Cam Thomas though? No one yet. But but when we have a championship team, when we get a star, he fills in that Lou Williams role where he comes off the bench, scores 20 points in 25 minutes and makes the defense hate their lives. Like he can do that. He can be Lou Williams. That’s a valuable asset. I agree. I’ve always said it’s a valuable asset. I wouldn’t compare him to Lou Williams. People would like say, “Why are you hating on Kim?” I’m I’m not that Cam could have the career of Lou Williams where he gets you 20 a night off the bench stays in the league for what 15 13 years that is very very valuable to NBA rosters NBA I agree and at 15 million it’s not breaking the bank$ 18 million is not breaking the bank but I contracts are based on stats we can say that they’re not but but they are and he’s if he averages 25 points a a game which I think he will he’s going to want to be paid especially when he sees Michael Porter getting paid 40s. I keep getting paid 40. I can’t get half that. No. I mean, Michael Porter Jr. averages 18 as a third option with seven plus rebounds throughout his career. Uh, does he deserve 40 million? No. But was he on a championship team and contributed to winning a championship? Yes. Like that’s the thing. You already see Cam Thomas just talking about the stats. I averaged 24 points a game. I average four. You know what I’m saying? Yeah. You did that in a 22 team sample size below league average efficiencies. Congrats. You’re on the worst team in basketball and you’re the only option to score. Anybody? His true shooting I I I said this to to you guys yesterday. His true shooting was the same as Donovan Mitchell’s and Donovan Mitchell puts up a lot of shots and and Donovan Mitchell I think is a better defender than Cam Thomas is in playmaker. I know I’m not playmaker. Yeah. Yeah. I like look at a guy like Darius Garland for example. Like I think he is the prototypical NBA guard when it comes with a mix of the scoring. He can playmake for you. Is yes is he an ideal sit situation in Cleveland where he’s playing with Donovan Mitchell as his other guard and has Jared Allen and and uh Evan Mobley as his power forward and starting center. Yes. But I think I view Darius Garland as probably a more valuable piece than Cam Thomas because is he not getting you is he he’s not getting you 25 points per game. That’s not who Darius Garland is. He can get you 1719 a night with what? How many assists did he average last year? So, seven plus seven plus assists. And is is Darius Garland a guy that, you know, opposing teams worry about defensively? No. But his defense overall kind of averages out and he’s not a liability defensively. I would value a guy like Darius Garland more than I would Cam Thomas on a championship winning team. Yeah. Yeah, I mean anybody that can give you 20 and seven a night is more valuable than a guy that gives you 24 and three on low efficiency. Absolutely. We talked about this like when Buddy Hill wanted to get paid when Buddy Hill had a It’s just the market’s not really I’ve always said this. If you got two guys, one’s built like Kamingo or Andre Egodal where he’s 667, can can guard multiple positions, can play multiple positions on the court, and he averages 25 points a game. And then there’s a 622 guard who can only play the two, who can only defend small guards. Who’s getting paid more? It’s not even a question. Yeah. Right. And and like that’s the position Cam Thomas is in. He’s he’s he’s not going to get if it’s Isaiah Thomas little it averaged 30 a game when you were at Boston, right? He never got paid. It’s I mean it’s unfortunate but for Cam it’s unfortunate but his game and and his size is not going to be valued in in in free in free agency. like the market’s not going to pay him 30 million a year. Yeah, absolutely. And you know what he gets I think is an interesting question. I think he again I What do you think Cam Thomas would prefer? A one-year $15 million contract or a 2-year $27 million deal? Gary, I’ll throw that to you. He ain’t taking the ladder, so I’ll take the first. He ain’t taking the ladder. He’s not locked in two year like he he doesn’t want to be here anymore. I think what about what about one-year deal with a player option? Yeah. Yeah. As long as he can get out. I think that’s ideal for him in case he tears his Achilles, right? Like um but yeah, I I I think he he wants out of here. He’s 24. He’s young. He doesn’t, you know, he wants the money. If he was 34 on his last contract, it’d be different, right? Like I give me the years. Give me the years. At this age, I want the money. Give me the money. I’ll go play myself into a bigger contract. Dylan. Yeah. I think he’d prefer the one-year deal as well. And and that’s the thing is if if that’s what he prefers and he’s trying to figure out a way to either get the most money or to to leave this team at some point for nothing. I I’m not I’m not trying to do that. You can leave, you know, just trade him. Yeah. I I I I think he wants some security, though. I I think that’s the biggest thing. I think he wants some security because he tears Achilles. What is he looking at next off season in restrict in unrestricted free agency? six $8 million on a one-year deal. I think he wants to be able to have an option to come back to Brooklyn um if all hell does break loose this year, but I don’t think he wants to be forced back on a second year. So, I think a one-year deal with a player option um for the 2027 uh for the 2026 2027 season is certainly going to be something interesting to watch. Appreciate you all tuning in. Make sure you smash that like button, hit subscribe. Gary, Dylan, and Con here. Connor right here with you guys on the show. Subscribe to our channels. Dylan and Gary, of course, the BK King, not the Midnets podcast, and myself, the Brooklyn Boys show. Appreciate you guys as always. I know you guys um I know Gary, we got to let you go in about, you know, in about 5 10 minutes. So, before we do so, just quick overall takeaway from Summer League now that it’s officially in the books. We were chopping it up backstage about this very topic. Gary, quick explanation here. Who should be the final two-way player for uh Amari Bailey? Pullman great. Amari Bailey. No, I look I don’t really I I would give it if I have to give it to one of these guys. If I can’t shop outside, I’ll give it to Caleb Daniels. He worked he worked his tail off. He played tremendous defense. He hit some He hit some shots. Like he looked like he can play he he could be a three and D guy. I mean, he’s 26, so I don’t really want to give it to him, but if I have to give it to one of these guys, I I I would give it to Caleb. Um, he he he earned it. He worked harder than anybody. He went from a guy I said has no shot of ever making this roster because he’s 26 to, hey, maybe we give him a shot, right? But I I don’t see any upside in him really. Like, I don’t want to give it to him. I’m just saying if these are my options. It’s like in uh the episode of the Sopranos where Tony Soprano is looking around for his next captain and he’s looking at everybody and he just looks like Ralph and he goes, “All right, I guess I’m gonna go with Ralphie because these other people are unacceptable. So, I’ll just go with Ralphie.” I that’s kind of that’s kind of my my inkling here on Caleb. Yeah, I the Dylan where where are you leaning right now? I know you spoke a little bit about Ty Tyrese Samuel off air. Caleb Daniels obviously played a lot of scrappy defense. Who should be the final two-way player? I think in terms of who deserves it most, it’s Daniels. But at the same time, if you’re looking at uh who is just as deserving of it and also showed a bit more upside and flashes, I think it’s Samuel as of right now. Uh Samuel is a year younger than and than than uh Caleb Daniels. He’s 25. Uh he can stretch the four as a as a power forward. I think he just brings a little bit more to the team. We’re kind of filled up at the guard position. So, if it was my choice on the two-way, I’d give it to Samuel. Interesting. I think a a someone to someone who’s a guard, but I think actually played okay minutes okay minutes for Brooklyn throughout the summer league was Dre Davis from Miss. I thought he provided the spark from time to time. I don’t think he should get the final two-way deal. I think the guy I’m I’m looking at right now, someone who didn’t have the best summer league, but I think has the most upside out of anyone in this group right here is is Grant Nelson. And I know Dylan, you said off air you think they should straight up sign him to Long Island. But I think when you look at Tyrese Samuel, Caleb Daniels, two guys on the older side already well into their 20s. I think Grant Nelson, fresh out of college, is the guy who gives you the most upside here. Can play power forward, can play the five for you if need be. So I’m looking at Grant Nelson. Side note for you guys, Gary, I know you mentioned Amari Bailey. Does anyone know what Armani Brooks is doing right now? Is he still in the NBA? He was he provided a nice spark for Brook one two seasons ago. So, he was shooting the three ball nicely. Armani Brooks two-way deal. I mean, I I would rather give it to a a proven NBA vet than I Caleb, guys. And I like the energy and the effort Caleb Daniels played with in in in the summer league. I I pointed out on the first summer league game. What do you think his upside is? Like, I mean, I’m being serious. He’s 25 years old. He’s 26. Like, 26. Even Even worse. Why? like I I I don’t I don’t want I wanted to give it to Grant Nelson, but he sucks, so I don’t want to give it to him anymore. So, I think you have to I think you have to earn a two-way spot. And that’s why I agree with I agree with Conor on the hasn’t shown that like I I agree with you in the sense of his upside, but I think a two-way spot’s deserved. And not to mention, too, you’re only eligible for what, two-way deals, right? And then you are eligible for three. I wouldn’t waste it on him just yet. He seems like a guy that you can straight up sign to Long Island, let him develop for a year if he showcases anything special. Then, you know, he can replace Tucson next year and and sign in my opinion. I agree. But it’s it’s a one-year deal left and it was a guaranteed two-way spot. So, at this point, you ride it out. You know, the whole point of this upcoming season is to suck. We need a top three pick badly to to really get this right. Um, so for now, I I would hold off on that. To me at least, Samuel as an older player, he’s not only earned it, but he also showed flashes of some upside, something that we haven’t seen in a couple of the guys that we have on this roster, similar in position to Samuel, which is he can space the floor, he can score efficiently in the paint, and he can also defend uh as well. So, I I think that that’s something that could be of value. Uh maybe like a a hidden gem off the bench, but I think as of right now, he earned it most. Gary, you got any final thoughts here before we let you go? I know you got to run. I I got a couple minutes. I got like 10 more minutes. I can hang up for about 10 more minutes. Let’s dive into the chat again, guys. Keep all your questions, comments, thoughts flowing in the chat. We’ll start getting into those down under Dunker. I don’t like CT’s mentality by going on social media and basically saying no one can guard him and having a full-blown souk suck at a critic. Just tell them you’ll prove everyone wrong and move on. Souki kid. Guys, got any thoughts there? I agree. Until you prove something, stop speaking. And this isn’t a shut up and play basketball comment. This is just a straight up, you haven’t proven anything in the league and you’re going into year five. You have no accolades. You have not made an all-star. You haven’t been close to being an all-star. You don’t have a scoring title. You don’t have a playoff run that looks of a star caliber player. Stop going back and forth with criticism that is valid and prove yourself. Yeah, absolutely. Uh yo, Gary, have you ever seen a top tier pro boxer go on and suck over social media at some random reporter. It’s so immature and weak to be honest. Floyd Mayweather did it on on on uh Shade 45. He went on to argue with the guy who said he sucks for about 45 minutes. It went it it it it went viral. This is about I don’t know 12 years ago. Uh yeah, I Yeah, people are overly sensitive in in all sports. This is not, you know, a uh a a basketball, but yeah, a pro boxing specifically because they don’t get the national media attention that football and basketball players and baseball players get. So, they kind of have to go to social media. Yeah, absolutely. LBL, if Mark was smart, he’d publicly back his player right now and say, “We’re hoping to resign him.” Marks isn’t smart, though. Not only is Mark’s not smart, but he also doesn’t value Cam Thomas. And we’ve known that from the start. If the queen had a pair of balls, she’d be the king, right? Like, but I mean, if Barks were smart, he’s not like that’s that that’s out the window. Yeah. And again, by the day, I don’t think he’s truly enamored with Cam Thomas either. So, I don’t I don’t think Markx and Markx is not a GM to typically go out and, you know, make public proclamations, per se. Like, he is a guy who keeps it very very close to the organization. Mark is a GM. He’s a scout that that that is masquerading as a GM. Yeah, exactly. He posted players like Hero gets like Hero gets $30 million a year. Like he was trying to compare himself to those cal caliber caliber players. It’s laughable. Play a full season and show something as Hero and others have. Exactly. And the fact and here’s something that I do want to bring up. The fact that he’s bringing up players like Tyler Hero and RJ Barrett as comparisons to what his contract should be is absolutely pathetic. Tyler Herro just made an all-star game. whether it was as a reserve or not or due to injury or not. The guy was a borderline all-star and became an all-star because of it. He’s also a guy that’s improved as a scorer efficiency and playmaking throughout his career. Cam Thomas hasn’t. RJ Barrett averaged 216 and five this past season. He’s one of the best third options in basketball and he’s going to be playing next to Scotty Barnes and Brandon Ingram as of right now this year. He’s better. This isn’t debatable. I don’t want to hear anything about skill set scoring. The game is not based on scoring. That’s not how you play the game of basketball. Andrew Demhard is a more valuable winning basketball player than Cam Thomas is currently and he doesn’t score as well as him. Can we all agree on that? Yeah, that’s what I’m saying. Like, so scoring means nothing to me. Unless if you’re putting up 25 plus at a 50% or higher clip that you’re not doing anything special. So I don’t want to hear the excuses anymore on certain players that he needs to compare his game to in terms of contract. He hasn’t earned it. Earn your contract. Earn your spot. It’s really not hard. If you’re that good and you think you’re that good, prove it. Stay healthy, play 60 plus games, and average 25 plus on 48, 49% or higher shooting. It’s not difficult, right? If you’re that good, just do it. L says, “Imagine telling Jokic he was a late pick.” But I think Joic is different. Joic came in right out of the gate with all odds stacked against him, proved his value, and let’s be honest, didn’t really get a huge huge huge contract till well after his rookie deal. He didn’t get where this he didn’t get given a bag right away, for example. Like Cam Thomas, I think coming off a season where he plays 25 games, I think the bar is a little I think he has the bar set a little too high for aspirations of a new deal. He’s trying to get paid for what he thinks he can be. And that’s the problem. I’m not trying to I’m not paying people based on that’s more football. That’s more football. Like in the NFL, that’s exactly what happens. That’s Yeah. You’re getting paid to do what you do. You’re not getting paid for what you think you can do. And even if you think doesn’t mean you’re going to do something. What’s Kaming getting paid for? what you think he can do. I think that the max that he should get paid is 2122 million, not 30. Then you’re not paying him. But I’m saying someone’s going to pay him for what they think he can do. Not because he really hasn’t done it. He’s been in the league four years now and he’s never really done it. I mean, he looks like he can. He fits the bill. He’s got a he’s got a tremendous skill set. He’s a great athlete, good NBA body, but he’s never really been a dynamic player, but he’s going to demand you. Like I’m sorry, but to me the comparisons this this isn’t even close. We’re we’re I saw a comment already basing things off of the year of the player. Tyler Hero in his fourth year averaged 20 points, five rebounds, four assists. He played 67 games. The efficiency was low 40 40 uh 44% but the three-point percentage was above league average at 38%. Like again allaround better player. Why do we continuously have these debates trying to compare him to other players? The only aspect to his game that is at an elite level is scoring. And scoring doesn’t win you championships. the only one that’s at an NBA level, right? Only he’s going to have that is an NBA level skill of scoring. Everything else is is is Yeah. Not like the NFL. You can have one of the best quarterbacks in the league and it doesn’t mean you’re going to win a championship every year. Joe Burrow, top five quarterback, hasn’t won a championship. He’s only made one. Lamar Jackson didn’t even make the playoffs last year, by the way. Lamar Jackson, top three quarterback, two-time MVP, hasn’t made it into the into a Super Bowl yet. Like, you can be great and you’re not going to win. Look at James Harden in the NBA. one of the most historic dominant players in basketball in terms of scoring never made it to an NBA finals. There are certain things that are valuable in the NBA. You need to be able to play defense. You need to be able to play two sides of the ball. The only player that has defied the odds as the number one option as a small guard who primarily scores is Steph Curry and that’s it. Damen Lillard hasn’t made a finals. He’s one of the best scorers in the NBA at the guard position. Kyrie Irving’s never done it as a number one option. Like they come like these aren’t this isn’t debatable anymore. The undersized scoring guard is not of value in the NBA. It is a third, fourth option on a championship team. So, we got to stop valuing him as if he’s the guy. He hasn’t been. He won’t be. He’s not going to be like I like him, but he’s just not the guy. And how much does a third option get paid? 20 million on a championship team? 35. But that’s about what Porter got. That’s about what they got. But on a rebuilding team, you’re still looking to have that flexibility to where you can bring in the number one number two option. You know what I mean? Like you’re not giving up number one money to a guy who isn’t a number one. You’re not giving up number three championship money to a guy who’s not even close to being on a playoff contender. It’s just he doesn’t have the market to do it. He has no say in what he wants right now. Yeah. I I don’t disagree. He’s got no leverage. He’s got no leverage. None. Absolutely. Uh down under Dunker, it’s actually sad that Timmy has shown more ability and consistent back basketball than Clax has shown in two years now. Very interesting. I you know I think you got to take what Timmy said kind of with a what Timmy showed, excuse me, kind of with a grain of salt given that it’s summer league, but I think he showed more athleticism. I think he gives more shooting prowess. Uh I still think Claxton might maybe a better defender at the NBA. I was and I just saw a comment from Mark. Mark’s one of our best commenters in terms of just opposing anything that we say. Well, shout out to Mark. But I want to bring this up real quick. You say that he’s a winning player and when he was healthy, he was on a contending team. That’s just not true. We’ve never contended with Cam Thomas as a starter. Cam Thomas uh his record as a starter since becoming an NBA player. He’s 29 and 51. I don’t want to hear that he results in winning. Stop. He’s 29 and 51. That only started as 80 games. Yep. And that’s going back from 2021. Gary under Vaughn there. I think the Spurs game it was where he dropped 40 points. Yeah, that’s going all the way back to 2021. As a starter, he’s 29 and 51. He barely start He barely started under Nash, under Ali. Um there were games he’d score 30 points and then not play the next game. Like, yeah, Cam Thomas, he he’s never been respected. He’s never really been given a fair shake. But you’re right, he’d have games he’d score 40 and then he’d play 12 minutes the next game. Like, what? Or not even playing? Yeah. What are we doing? And by the way, in these games, right, in this in this sample size, it’s not the full 80 games that it’s showing here, but since 2021 up until it shows, oh, I can do show more. Let’s see. I want to see what his full stat line is in these 80 games as a starter. He’s averaging 24.4 points per game, three and a half rebounds, 3.2 assists. He’s shooting 44% from the field, below league average. He’s shooting 37.6% from three. That’s about league average. Let’s see what else has he got in here. I got to find where turnovers is. This list is way too long. Turnovers per game, he’s at Jesus, this is a long scroll. 2.3, so about league average. Like, he’s done nothing of star capability outside of the scoring points per game, and that’s literally it. Like, there’s nothing else that stands out and shows that this is a guy who deserves money. When you’re getting double teamed as much as Kim is, you should just happen to fall into assist because you’re always being double team. That means there’s someone else who’s not, right? like you have the ball in your hand at all times. They’re constantly double teaming you. You should fall into assists, but he doesn’t. He has 11 games out of these 80 games where he’s had five or more assists as a starter since 2012. Like that’s not impressive. You’re one one out of every eight games pretty much you are you are putting up more than five assists. You’re an undersized guard getting double team. All right, I gotta drop off y’all. All right, thank you for hopping on, Gary. Appreciate it. Later, man. Shout out to Gary joining us here on the show. Oh, he got to run, but Dylan and I will carry it through here. Should should be on for about another, you know, 10 15 minutes. So, get all your questions in the chat here before we wrap. Allan says Nets need to find a way to get another first or second uh another one or two first rounders in 2026. At this point, Dylan, I mean, how much are these picks really being valued? Because the Nets have so many draft selections, 31 total picks over the next seven years. If the Nets really, really, really, and I understand it’s a strong draft class next year, if they really want to get into the top three after maybe they don’t do the best job of tanking for the second consecutive year, I think you could package a bunch of these picks over the next few years and and get into the top five, the top three. I I disagree only because we’ve seen this in the NFL. We’ve seen this in the NBA. When you have draft classes of these calibers, teams are not trading out. We just saw it with the Mavericks, who are a playoff team, the Spurs, who can be a playoff team, the 76ers, who will be a contending team. These are all three teams that just got top three, none of which deserved it, by the way. Um, and all three didn’t trade out, and two of them were rumored to potentially trade out. So, that I’m not banking on on trading up. We just witnessed Shawn Marks take five picks and not trade up. I don’t have any trust in him whatsoever. If it’s not a top three pick next year, h we’re we’re screwed for a very long time. You think it needs to be a top three pick? I thought this draft box was supposed to be very deep and it has to be a top three pick in the sense that you didn’t draft your number one this year, right? And and those three guys are the only solidified number ones as of right now. Nate Ament could maybe make a case at four. There’s a couple of sneaky guys in there as well like Darius Auff um you know Mikuel Brown like there’s a couple of guys in there but again two of those names I mentioned are guards. We don’t need any more guards. Next year is the wing heavy draft class. You need to go and get a wing. Um, so to me, you got to get one of, you know, Peterson Deans or Booer. I know I know Peterson plays the one and the two, but that’s a guard that if you’re in the realm of potentially being able to draft, you take him no matter what because he’s going to be your Cam Thomas replacement. He is the type of guy at 6566 who can play the one and the two as a combo guard, but also brings athleticism, high upside defensive ability, three-level scoring. He’s your two-way guard, right? And that’s something that I wouldn’t be opposed to taking even though we have guards this year. To me though, if you don’t land a top three pick, if it’s not Peterson to Banser or Boozer next year, you need to figure out a way into trading up for for a second lottery pick. Um, no matter what, I mean, I’m I’m talking give up three future firsts plus, you know, a player if you have to. Like, I I don’t care. You have to figure out a way though to to land uh I would say a big and a wing next year in that draft class. Marlene comes in and says Kaminga doesn’t rebound, can’t defend uh can’t defend his position, can’t shoot threes, and can’t convert his free throws when he’s fouled. He just jumps high. Kaminga sucks. And everybody has the right to their opinion. I mean, if you’re talking about the upside of the player, he hasn’t been utilized in that system once. Uh he averages 24 minutes per game. That’s six to eight minutes less than what Cam Thomas did this year. Uh so when you’re talking about uh what you’ve seen from the players so far, there’s players who don’t develop in certain places that need to be traded to progress in their careers. Uh we’ve seen that with many players. Look at Josh Gideon OKC is the most recent example. A guy who could barely start on that team, was barely getting rotational minutes, wasn’t valued, and gets traded to Chicago and has a second half of the season that looks like an all-star caliber player. Uh it’s it’s all about the system fit. Cam Thomas not really a system fit here. Maybe there’s more to his game that could be seen, but it’s not going to be shown in Brooklyn. And that’s just my opinion. We all have the right to that opinion. To me, I think Kaminga would be valued a bit more in the system. You need a guy who can play the three. You already have two guards who can playmake and and you have one that can space the floor as of right now in Jager. I I don’t see the value in Cam Thomas on this team compared to what the value could be of Kaminga on this team. Lou, the issue you guys overlook is if you’re signing and trading him, who’s willing to trade um that will agree to pay him what he wants, nobody trading him, playing on his qualifying offer without knowing what they have to pay. I actually disagree with that. I think if there’s a team that values him, that’ll give him that verbal commitment of resigning him in the offseason to what he wants, then he will certainly have no problem going elsewhere. I think a team like Sacramento, Detroit, um Milwaukee, I think those are three teams that you could really look at as potential Cam Thomas suitors if the time comes. You just saw Detroit lose Tim Hardway Jr. and League Beasley, one to gambling, the other to free agency. Um so, you know, to to me, I think Detroit is a team that could really value Cam Thomas, and I think he’s a perfect guard to put next to a guy like Kate Cunningham, a guy who can play both ends of the floor, but is also a primary playmaker who also averages 23 plus a game. Um, and he also does so efficiently. He’s an all-star point guard. I don’t want to hear any excuses for for Kate Cunningham, he’s legit. He’s a legit superstar in this league at the age of what, 24, 23. Um, so I I think if there’s a team that has a package to do so, but also has the desire to do so, I think it would be one of either uh Detroit or Milwaukee. And realistically, you know, Jaden Ivy and two first round picks for Cam Thomas, I’m I’m not looking away from that. I would Oh, that’s a great deal in my opinion. Yeah, I I think that’s a great deal. Uh, personally, I mean, they could I really like Jaden Ivy. I Yeah, I I I agree. I like Jaden Ivy a too. He’s also an expiring contract. You don’t know what his value is going to be, but it also gives you one more year to figure out the whole financial situation. So, I I think if you’re looking at a deal like that, I would I would jump on it immediately. Sign me up for 18 and four night from Jaden Ivy. I’m perfectly okay with that. And by the way, yeah, on a side note from Malik Beasley, I think that whole thing is insane. And I don’t think him, you know, hammering home a dunk to cover a spread at the end of a game is enough evidence to pretty much blackmail the guy around the league because th this guy is he played 82 all 82 games for uh Detroit last year if I’m not mistaken. Played every game, did not miss a single game and now he’s a free agent and I feels like he’s he’s one of the best 400 players in the world. He should be on an NBA roster right now and he’s a free agent. So I what I think happened is I think Detroit and their front office like pretty much told every NFL and every NBA, excuse me, GM and front office in the league to shy away from this guy, which is unfortunate because I think Malik Beasley’s a very good player. And whether he did it or not, I don’t think hitting a dunk at the end of a game to cover a spread is enough evidence to I mean listen, Vegas when when you when you begin the sports betting world, Vegas owns you, right? And and if you’re going behind their back to make money or make money for other people, that’s taken seriously. And the entire point of gambling as a person who gamles is you’re not supposed to win. So when you’re putting people Yeah. you’re when you’re putting friends, family, yourself in a position to win by by considerably cheating, you’re going to get the highest of punishments. We’ve seen people domestically abuse their girlfriends and wives in the NFL and the NBA and they get less punishment than gambling. Like they take gambling seriously, which is which is crazy by the way. You should be banned from the league for for beating the hell out of your wife or girlfriend. Miles Bridges. Yeah. Miles Bridg like like Ray Rice finally got exiled after his whole stupid But you’ve seen guys like Kareem Hunt and we call him Kareem Punt now because he kicks his girlfriend or whatever it was. Like you know with Deshawn Watson like we can go on a list of names of people. I mean I’m a Steelers fan. Ben Rothllessberger, you can make the case that he did it, but proven not guilty. Whatever you want to say, like, yeah, these guys all get away with those things, but gambling’s taken more seriously. It’s strange, but Vegas, they they they have pull. So, when when you get caught for gambling, if you’re in the realm of suspicion for gambling, you’re going to get the maximum punishment for it. Oh, absolutely. Uh, the tip off a Brooklyn Nets podcast comes in. Says, Tyrie Samuels is nice. Someone says that he reminds them of Thomas Bryant. It’s not a bad comp. I mean, as a backup big, I would not mind that. I I mean, how much up my the question I always come back to is how much upside does this guy really have? I think as a guy who can come in and just prove himself when a guy like Noah Clowney gets hurt, which is inevitable. I love Noah Clowny, but the man is too skinny to be in the NBA at this moment in time, especially at the lower body region. His ankle just goes every 20 games. Um, you know, to see him play, I I think there could be some some upside in him. I I don’t mind Samuel at all. We’ll wrap up with this trade proposal right here from Down Under. Dunker says, “Yeah, send CT to the Kings. CT and Clax for Sabonis. Let it happen.” No. No point. Absolutely no point. There’s no point. Yeah. It’s not even just the contract, but you we’re not trying to win games this year. like people continuously th this is one of the biggest problems I have with fans because the way that I look at the game is nowhere near the level of what other people as fans look at the game. I’m looking at this as like a three-year picture and I’ve been looking at it since last year like this is a three-year rebuild. You already completed year one with Mikuel. You traded Muel. You went into year two with Cam Thomas. You didn’t bottom out correctly. This is the final year to get it right in terms of drafting rebuild. Right? After this year, you’re banking on other teams falling and getting good picks, right? You’re not banking on on being a bottom tier team anymore. So, you got to look at it from a bigger picture. Sabonis doesn’t fit the timeline currently. There’s no reason to to go out and trade for a guy who’s a little bit older than Claxton and Thomas, who’s making a ton more money than both. You’re clogging up two roster spots for the price of one, and you’re also going to what, add an extra three to five games winning because of him. There’s just no point. Uh stay with what you got. currently take on a bad contract or or or try and add another first round pick for next year and and move on. You know, this is you’re going to hate watching this year, but we all lived through it. I mean, I lived through a 10 and 72 season. You’ll be all right. You know, trust me, it doesn’t get worse than than paper bags uh at courtside from season ticket holders. You’ll be all right. Do the Nets even have season ticket holders anymore? Is that a thing? Who knows? I get a call three times a year and I’m like, I’m not paying that. You’re good. Yeah. people who actually go out of their way like this is a fun one. There’s always a couple of people on Twitter that I’ll have debates and arguments with because they love to throw out the like I’m the season ticket holder card like as if that’s some like prestigious award that gives you the right to have your opinion heard more than anybody else. Season ticket holders don’t mean I’m just going to throw that out there. You’re you’re not special. You just pay more money to watch our team lose. Congrats. Per personally, I’d rather just buy tickets like 2 days before than buy like a fivegame package, for example, because you end up paying more for crappy seats in the five game package compared to like you just take a game by game. You can get really solid seats at a game for, you know, 150 bucks. Instead, you end up paying, you know, 300 a night and that equates to over, you know, around 1,500 2,000 bucks for a five game package where you don’t even have great seats. So yeah, no, it definitely it it’s not worth it. I’ll never be a season ticket holder for anything. I don’t care if I’ve got the money to do so. It’s just it’s not worth it to me. I’ll go game by game when I please. Undoubtedly. So, I think the Nets have finished last in season ticket sales like every year for the past three or four years. So, Brooklyn fans, but don’t but don’t worry. Nets Daily will tell you that the the attendance record is at 99.7% every year. Don’t worry. You’ll he’ll he’ll he’ll have that debate with you. I can’t stand. Yeah, because you got 75% of the arena. That’s a bunch of tourist foreigners and opposing teams fans. I’m I’m Don’t even get me started on that topic. I I I love having that debate with people. Dylan, you’re the best. Appreciate you joining us. Any final thoughts? And uh let everyone know where they can find you. Yeah, feel free to follow me at NetsPress on Instagram. We’re at 21.1K over there. So continuously growing. Looking to hit 25K hopefully uh by sometime next year. That’d be nice. But uh feel free to follow me over there, BK Nothing Nets Podcast. That’s our show with uh Gary and I. Feel free to subscribe to us over there. And if you want to have debates, argue, uh, watch me say dumb feel free to follow me on Twitter at Netspressig. There we go. Appreciate you all tuning in. Smash the like button, hit subscribe. We’ll be back tomorrow. Fun guests coming up on Monday and Tuesday. Fred Cats of the Athletic joints on Monday, and then Scoop Robinson joining us on Tuesday. So stay tuned for that. Smash the like button, hit subscribe right here on the Brooklyn Boys Show. That’ll do it for us. He’s Dylan. I’m your host, Connor Long. Have a great rest of your day, everyone. And as always, go Nets.

Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas is making headlines after clapping back at an NBA insider who labeled him a “ball hog.” Is the criticism fair—or completely out of line?

Connor from The Brooklyn Boys Show, Dylan from Nets Press, and Gary from the BK Nothin But Nets Podcast break it all down. The trio reacts to Cam’s fiery response and dives deep into what it means for his role on the Nets moving forward.

Plus, we give you a full recap of the Brooklyn Nets’ Summer League performance—standouts, disappointments, and what it all means for the team heading into the season.

Don’t miss this in-depth roundtable—Nets fans MUST see this.

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