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Brooklyn Nets Injury Could Have Major Impact on Sixers

The Brooklyn Nets' injury announcement on Saturday could have an impact on the Sixers.
Justin Grasso|
Apr 14, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey (0) drives against Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas (24) during the third quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images
Apr 14, 2024; Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, USA; Philadelphia 76ers guard Tyrese Maxey (0) drives against Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas (24) during the third quarter at Wells Fargo Center. Mandatory Credit: Bill Streicher-Imagn Images | Bill Streicher-Imagn Images

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On Saturday, a Philadelphia 76ers Atlantic Division rival made a major injury announcement, which could have an impact on the Eastern Conference standings.

The Brooklyn Nets confirmed that another hamstring injury to the scoring standout guard Cam Thomas is “expected” to be sidelined for the remainder of the 2024-2025 NBA season.

via @BrooklynNets: Brooklyn Nets Injury Update: Cam Thomas has been diagnosed with a left hamstring strain. The injury occurred during Thursday night’s game at Chicago. Given the number of days remaining in the schedule and the time needed to appropriately recover, it is expected that Thomas will miss the remainder of the season.

The Nets, Sixers, and the Toronto Raptors have seen a lot of movement in the lottery standings lately. Heading into their Friday night matchup against the Indiana Pacers, the Sixers found themselves trailing the 10th-place Chicago Bulls. After a third-straight loss, the Sixers dropped past the Nets to get to 13th place.

Currently, Brooklyn and Philadelphia hold a 22-44 record. Both teams are dealing with many notable injuries, and Thomas’ return to the Brooklyn injury report is just another opportunity for the Nets to get the upper hand on the Sixers in the lottery standings.

Cam Thoma
Mar 13, 2025; Chicago, Illinois, USA; Chicago Bulls forward Matas Buzelis (14) defends Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas (24) during the first quarter at United Center. Mandatory Credit: David Banks-Imagn Images | David Banks-Imagn Images

According to Tankathon, the Sixers have a 39 percent chance of landing a top-four pick in the 2025 NBA Draft. They are just under 10 percent for the first-overall pick. The Sixers have to remain within the top six after the lottery in order to keep their selection. If not, they’ll fork over the pick to the Oklahoma City Thunder.

With or without Thomas, the Nets have struggled to climb into the postseason picture in the East. As the 2024-2025 NBA season was expected to be a rebuilding year for Brooklyn, nothing about their record stands out as surprising.

Brooklyn’s spot in the lottery standings will be something the Sixers will have to keep an eye on. As for the rest of the NBA, Cam Thomas could be a name to watch on the open market this year. As he wraps up a $4 million team option with the Nets, Thomas becomes a restricted free agent in 2025. He ends the 2024-2025 season with 25 games played, posting averages of 24 points, four assists, and three rebounds.

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Justin Grasso
JUSTIN GRASSO

Justin Grasso was a credentialed writer and publisher covering the Philadelphia 76ers for Sports Illustrated’s Philadelphia 76ers On SI Network. Grasso got his start in sports media in 2016 with FantasyPros, working the news desk, providing game-by-game player analysis and updates on the Portland Trail Blazers and the Golden State Warriors. By 2017, he joined FanSided’s Philadelphia Eagles site as a staff writer. After spending one season covering the Eagles as a staff writer, Grasso was promoted to become the site’s Co-Editor. For the next two NFL seasons, he covered the Eagles closely before broadening his NFL coverage. For a brief stint, Grasso covered the NFL on a national basis after joining Heavy.com as an NFL news desk writer. In 2019, Grasso joined the 76ers' beat on a part-time basis, stepping into a role with South Jersey’s 97.3 ESPN. Ahead of the 2019-2020 NBA season, he concluded a three-year stint covering the Eagles and joined the Sixers beat full-time. Grasso has covered the 76ers exclusively since then for Sports Illustrated. He is a member of the Pro Basketball Writers Association. Twitter: @JGrasso_ Instagram: @JGrassoMedia Threads: @JGrassoMedia

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