Nets dealt major blow with Cam Thomas, Cam Johnson injuries
01/04/2025 05:28 PM
The Brooklyn Nets lost two of their top players for extended periods. Cam Johnson will miss the team’s next three games after spraining his ankle during Thursday’s road win over the Milwaukee Bucks. Cam Thomas will be sidelined for nine games after reaggravating a hamstring injury that recently held him out a month.
The injuries present a significant blow to the Nets’ struggling offense. After trading Dennis Schroder to the Golden State Warriors, Brooklyn has ranked 27th over the last nine games.
Nets lose Cam Johnson and Cam Thomas for extended periods
Johnson has been the team’s most consistent player and one of the NBA’s most efficient scorers this season. The 6-foot-8 sharpshooter has averaged 19.5 points per game on 50/44/90 shooting splits. He leads the league in effective field goal percentage (62.4) among 71 players attempting at least 12 field goals and five three-pointers per game.
Meanwhile, Thomas was having the best season of his career before his hamstring held him out for a month. The 23-year-old has averaged 24.7 points and 3.4 assists per game on 45/38/88 shooting splits.
Thomas returned from his month-long absence during Sunday’s loss against the Orlando Magic. He sat out Wednesday at Toronto for load management but returned at Milwaukee, posting 24 points, seven rebounds and two assists in 22 minutes.
Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez didn’t know of a particular play during which Thomas reaggravated his injury.
“I don’t know, I think it was discomfort,” Fernandez said. “Because at some point, I can see the difference between the first half and second half, energy-wise and efficiency. But I can also think, ‘Well, you haven’t played in a while, so, you know, you’re not as fresh,’ so I don’t know. I have no idea, but he did a good job getting back and being ready to play.”
“He started great, the two games… And now this injury is — I feel for him because obviously we want CT with us, and he was doing a great job scoring efficiently. Day-to-day, we want to have him around, and we will have him around, but just not on the court. But we know he’ll be back soon.”
D’Angelo Russell, acquired last week from the Los Angeles Lakers, will shoulder an immense burden as Brooklyn’s lone high-level shot creator with Johnson and Thomas out. The 10-year veteran has averaged 16.5 points, 10.0 assists and 2.0 turnovers per game on 50.0 percent shooting over his first two appearances back with Brooklyn.
Thursday’s win was the latest example of the Nets exceeding expectations during a presumed tanking season. It brought them to 13-21, a 31-win pace after entering the year with a 19.5-win projection. Thomas and Johnson’s extended absences could course-correct the team’s direction over the next two-plus weeks.
"Pretty much the same way we've been going it so far, by committee,” Fernandez said when asked how Brooklyn will make up for the injuries. “There's gonna be a lot of minutes to be played and a lot of shots to be taken, and it's not just one person. And I think the guys have a great mindset and a togetherness, and I think we're ready to fill right there what we need to fill. So excited to see some of these other guys do things that they're not used to doing or maybe as much. So a good challenge for all of us… We'll have right around 10-11 healthy bodies and rotations can go 9-10, so it's gonna be everybody.”
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