Report: Cam Thomas Most Likely to Accept Qualifying Offer in RFA Class

Although NBA free agency kicked off over a month ago, some of the top restricted free agents available are yet to make a decision about where they will be playing next season.

In the Brooklyn Nets’ case, they have watched Cam Thomas blossom into an exciting young scorer, but efficiency and durability concerns have likely prevented them from offering him a long-term contract. On top of that, the Nets went ahead and used four of their NBA-record five first-round picks to draft guards, signaling that Thomas may not be part of the team’s long-term future.

While contract talks don’t seem to be heating up between Thomas and the organization, they did extend him a one-year, $5.99 million qualifying offer ahead of free agency and reportedly offered him a two-year deal worth around $14.1 million per year, with a team option on the second season, around the value of the mid-level exception.

However, Thomas does not seem to be satisfied with settling for the mid-level exception, or a qualifying offer. According to a source close to NetsDaily, Thomas is reportedly asking for more than $30 million, a price that only the Nets can afford at this point.

In part of a recent ESPN article written by Tim Bontemps, he mentioned that Thomas is the restricted free agent most likely to play on his qualifying offer next season.

"The 23-year-old scoring guard's contract value has been difficult to peg since he slipped to late in the first round in 2022. He averaged 24 points last season, but it remains unclear what kinds of offers he is receiving," Bontemps said. "If a deal gets done with Brooklyn, expect it to look, at least in structure, like the ones the Nets signed with center Day'Ron Sharpe and forward Ziaire Williams earlier this offseason: one-year deals with team options on the second."

Although Thomas is fresh off averaging career highs in points (24 points per game), assists (3.8 assists per game), and rebounds (3.3 rebounds per game), his high asking price and the team's commitment to their rookies make it seem highly unlikely that he will sign a multi-year contract with the team.

While the delay to sign a contract and a recent outburst on Twitter may indicate otherwise, Thomas made it clear ahead of free agency that he hopes to suit up for the Nets next season.

“I definitely, definitely want to be back in Brooklyn. It’s definitely home for me. Being drafted there you definitely build bonds with a lot of people there. so I definitely love it there,” Thomas told WTKR. “But at the same time you have to do what’s best for you in the business aspects. So I have to play that by ear, but I definitely want to be back for sure. I definitely love Brooklyn.”