© Wendell Cruz-USA TODAY Sports
Cam Thomas thrilled for a fresh start in Brooklyn under interim HC Kevin Ollie
Out of all the Brooklyn Nets players who seized a zigzagging experience this season from the recently dismissed Jacque Vaughn, it has been absolutely Cam Thomas.
With Vaughn at the helm, the 23-year-old spent the season fully unaware of his role and position within the franchise. Frequently, as a starter who is tasked to lead Brooklyn with his elite scoring ability, Thomas will suddenly see himself coming off the bench due to defensive reasons from the head coach.
But with Kevin Ollie serving now as the newest voice for them, Thomas is optimistic about the fresh start and possibilities that he is about to receive.
Move forward
While he gained an inconsistent and frustrating play exposure from him this season, Cam can only feel for Vaughn being relieved of his head coaching duties by the Nets. But with their regular season and postseason hopes in danger, the promising guard sees reasons for the recent changes that took place.
“At the end of the day, you’ve got to get wins, got to make the playoffs. So the front office made the decision they felt was best for the team as an organization,” Thomas said. “We’ve just got to move forward and try to stack wins.
“I found out when Sean [Marks] told me. I didn’t even know. I saw it on the internet, but I thought it was like a prank or something. But Sean called and informed me. It’s unfortunate, but it’s what comes with it. You don’t want to see nobody lose their job at the end of the day. It’s tough, but it’s what comes with it.”
The growth continues
Ollie will not just take the bold challenge of leading the struggling Brooklyn team to a late-season surge; he'll also be in charge of providing Thomas with the needed development process and a much-defined role in the wake of his 21.2 points per game average this year.
For that, he has no motive but to push Thomas more toward his limit and demand further productivity, not just on the offensive side of the game.
“Cam has done an absolutely awesome job with, of course, scoring the basketball, we know that, but just the little things that we have asked him to do,” Ollie said. Getting out of himself. You know, we talk about hitting all the time on rebounds and being back and playing better defense and understanding that you can be a masterpiece on offense and also be a masterpiece on defense. And giving him all those different tools and seeing him grow in those areas has been great.
“We’re going to push him even more and give him things that he has to do to continue to play at this level and continue to be the best player he can possibly be. And those things are the energy things, those are the effort things that we know he can do even on a better scale.”
