The Nets will be without Cam Thomas for Friday’s game against the visiting Pistons. The question is how many more games the high-scoring guard will miss.
Thomas was forced out of Wednesday’s first win of the season with left hamstring tightness, and the Nets offered no grade on the injury, or timeline for his return.
“Hopefully we can have him back very soon,” coach Jordi Fernández said. “If not, we’ll do whatever it takes. His health is the No. 1 priority for us. And we’ll go from there, next man up if need be.”
The injury is to the same hamstring that ruined Thomas’ season a year ago. He hurt it three times, and was limited to just 25 games. Still, Fernández claimed he wasn’t worried about the young guard suffering a fourth injury to the same body part.
“Unless you’re a doctor or you saw the film, I don’t know if it’s the same injury or not,” Fernández said. “There’s a lot of things that go into it, so I cannot really comment on it. It’s just tightness. … The only thing I can say is he’s done a great job. He’s worked on his body, and he’s played really hard.”
Michael Porter Jr. had 32 points against Indiana, stepping up offensively in Thomas’ absence.
“I definitely got to be more aggressive,” Porter said. “We don’t have the same release valve that we have late in the shot clock that Cam gives us.”
Terance Mann was the third different Net to start at point guard this season after Ben Saraf and Tyrese Martin. Playing out of position on Wednesday, he finished with 15 points, six assists and was a plus-15.
Now, Mann is listed as probable Friday with left shoulder soreness.
Drake Powell has been upgraded to questionable in his bid to return from a sprained right ankle. The rookie has only played two games and hurt it both times.
Saraf, Nolan Traore and Danny Wolf are all out on G-League assignment. Fernández gave some insight as to the team’s plans to split the rookies’ time between Brooklyn and Long Island.
“Now they have the opportunity to have real practices, real games. So those [three], if we get the whole season with them between playing in Long Island and the NBA 60-plus games is a win,” Fernández said. “We believe that they can compete at this level. It’s just a process.”
Center Nic Claxton is averaging 18.7 points, 8.3 rebounds and six assists since Sunday, handing out 18 dimes in the past three games. His assist average (3.8) and total (30) are team highs.
“It’s going back to my roots. I played point guard growing up, so I’m comfortable having the basketball in my hand and making decisions,” Claxton said. “The coaching staff has trusted me a lot this year to do so.”
