Cam Thomas was once regarded as one of the best young scorers in the NBA, as the 24-year-old guard was challenging the likes of Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant as a rookie on the Brooklyn Nets. Despite having multiple seasons after that to develop on the tanking Nets, Thomas seemed to remain a one-dimensional player who couldn’t impact the game outside of scoring. Nonetheless, he was one of the best in the NBA at that, averaging 24.0 points, 3.3 rebounds, and 3.8 assists in 25 games last season.
He was a restricted free agent in the summer of 2025, signing the qualifying offer worth $5.9 million and with a no-trade clause in September after a months-long contract standoff. The Nets waived him in February to get around his NTC, with the Milwaukee Bucks signing him off waivers. Unfortunately, he got waived again on Monday night. While he can join another team right now, he won’t be eligible to participate in the NBA Playoffs if his new team qualifies for that.
Thomas averaged 13.5 points, 1.7 rebounds, and 2.6 assists in 42 games on the season as a whole. So how did this year turn out to be as disastrous as it was for the guard?
September 4, 2025: Cam Thomas Bets On Himself By Turning Down Other Offers For Qualifying Deal
Thomas had the entirety of last season and the summer of 2025 to agree on a contract that would guarantee his future in the NBA. He couldn’t get a deal last season because Thomas came into negotiations hoping to net upwards of $30 million annually as a proven high-volume scorer in the NBA. The Nets had no interest in that and chose not to negotiate with Thomas until he tested the market as a restricted free agent and realized that no team was trying to sign him.
After sitting in free agency for almost three months, Thomas signed the $5.9 million qualifying offer with a no-trade clause. The Nets had put two alternative deals on the table: one, where Thomas signs for $30 million over two seasons, with the second year being a team option. Second, Thomas signs a deal worth $9.5 million, giving him more annual money but making him forfeit his no-trade clause. He chose the NTC, but could never wield it as the Nets didn’t even try trading him all season.
He averaged 15.6 points, 1.8 rebounds, and 3.1 assists in 24 games for the Nets this season, seeing his usage drop drastically before getting phased out of the rotation.
February 5, 2026: Nets Waive Cam Thomas To Make Roster Room For Josh Minott
Given Thomas’ average production and the coaching staff having moved on from having him as a featured player, Thomas looked like he was surplus to requirements on the Nets. They have multiple new young guards like Egor Demin, Nolan Traore, and Ben Saraf, whom the team would rather give Thomas’ minutes to, which is what happened throughout the season. As a result, Thomas held the belief that the Nets didn’t want to give him an opportunity to succeed.
The Nets made supplemental moves at the 2026 trade deadline, one of which was acquiring Josh Minott from the Boston Celtics for cash considerations. The Nets roster was full, so they decided to make room by waiving Thomas’ expiring contract and making him an unrestricted free agent after clearing waivers.
February 8, 2026: Thomas Signs With Bucks For Postseason Push
Thomas was one of the most proven players on the buyout market after the trade deadline, joining the Milwaukee Bucks for a defined role on a team with postseason hopes. At least that’s what Thomas thought at the time of joining, as the Bucks’ situation would worsen with an 8-13 record since signing Cam. Giannis Antetokounmpo’s injury was a major setback, but it seems like the team might have engineered Antetokounmpo’s absence to protect their draft interests.
With the Bucks now eight games behind the No. 10 seed, it’s clear that they will abandon their push for the postseason. This made Thomas a player the team didn’t really have a use for, given his one-dimensional skillset without Antetokounmpo on the court. The Bucks would rather give the minutes to their players, such as Ryan Rollins and Kevin Porter Jr., instead of giving Thomas minutes just for him to leave in a few weeks.
March 23, 2026: Bucks Waive Cam Thomas And Make Him Ineligible For Playoffs On New Team
As the aforementioned concerns mounted and the Bucks’ desire to play competitive basketball waned, the team decided to release Thomas with just 11 games left on their schedule. Clearly, the situation was untenable for the Bucks internally, as releasing a player they just signed might seem foolish. They had to have a good reason to let Thomas go, as the guard doesn’t have a reason to want to leave, given he can’t join a new team for a postseason push.
He averaged 10.7 points, 1.6 rebounds, and 1.9 assists in 18 games for the Bucks. Unless the Golden State Warriors want to sign him to mitigate their injury crisis with an offensive player, it doesn’t look like Thomas will find a new team before the end of the 2025-26 season.
It’s crazy how far he fell in just a year. He decided to bet on himself, but the circumstances around him never gave him the chance he needed to prove he’s worth big bucks to a contending team. If he can’t provide anything on the court outside three-level scoring, it’s hard to see him finding his way back into the league outside being a potential Sixth Man on a defense-oriented roster.
