Nets HC Jordi Fernández Praises Cam Thomas’ Playmaking vs. Kings: 'That’s Who We Want'

The Brooklyn Nets guard finished with six assists to one turnover in the Brooklyn Nets’ 108-103 road win against Sacramento.

Nov 24, 2024; Sacramento, California, USA; Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas (24) dribbles against Sacramento Kings forward Keegan Murray (13) during the first quarter at Golden 1 Center. Mandatory Credit: Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images / Darren Yamashita-Imagn Images

Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas bounced back from arguably his toughest game of the season with his best playmaking performance of the year in the team’s win against the Sacramento Kings.

The 23-year-old finished with six assists (two off his career-high) and one turnover (a season-low). That came after Thomas had a season-high seven assists but with as many turnovers in Brooklyn’s Friday loss to the Philadelphia 76ers. 

Nets head coach Jordi Fernández reflected on Thomas’ facilitating: “To me, what stood out the most [was] the six assists to one turnover … Obviously, we know he can score a lot of points — and today, he did. He did everything. He pressured the ball defensively, he made a lot of plays for his teammates, and then he scored efficiently. Moving forward, that’s the Cam Thomas we want. I’m very proud of him. I don’t care so much about the 34 [points] but again, the six and one, is unbelievable.” 

Another 30-piece for @24_camthomas!

He's got 6 on the year, and the Nets get the W. pic.twitter.com/sj8MT3XyqS

— NBA (@NBA) November 25, 2024

Thomas predictably leads the Nets in scoring, at 24.8 points per game. As of now, he'd also be having the most efficient scoring season of his career (59.8% true shooting); however, the indicators when it comes to seeing an uptick in assists aren’t quite there. 

Accounting for the Nets scorer's lack of minutes early in his NBA career, his assists per 36 minutes have only grown from 2.4 as a rookie to 3.7 in his fourth year. Thomas’ assist percentage has gradually improved each season as well, although only by about three percentage points a year.

“Whenever we play a certain way, we have better results,” Thomas said after the Kings game. “Everybody was locked in defensively, and then … no matter who’s making the three, making the shot, everybody [was] finding the open man. The ball’s gonna find the right person if it’s moving.” 

Alongside his six assists and one turnover, Thomas poured in 34 points, the most of any player on either team, to help Brooklyn secure its seventh win of the season. The 7-10 Nets won't get any rest, as they travel to the Bay Area to face the Golden State Warriors on Monday night for the second leg of a back-to-back. 

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