A Nets-Cam Thomas Trade Makes Sense, But Can It Get Done?

NBA trade season is practically upon us, with rumors starting to flurry. As the February deadline sits less than two months away, reports and storylines are starting to appear regarding the top candidates to be moved.

The Brooklyn Nets don't have any real pressure to buy or sell this season, but they can certainly get involved in the market. They have a few veterans whose teams could be willing to give up future assets for, but also have enough salary cap space to be a facilitating team for others.

The latest Nets trade buzz comes from ESPN's Shams Charania, who recently stated that the organization could move on from Cam Thomas before the deadline after failed contract negotiations over the summer. Thomas hasn't played since Nov. 5, having suffered a hamstring injury, but his future was in question before that after being forced to settle for the qualifying offer this summer.

"The Nets have $15 million in cap space and can create more, which has led to increased trade talks about using their room to absorb salary while receiving assets, sources said," Charania wrote. "The Nets, Pistons ($14.1 million trade exception) and Utah Jazz ($18.4 million trade exception) are the only teams with significant room that can take in larger deals and not be impacted by the apron.

"Brooklyn could also work with Cam Thomas' agents at Octagon to navigate his future, potentially via trade, as he plays the remainder of the season on the qualifying offer and will be an unrestricted free agent next summer."

Many fans and analysts have questioned Thomas's ability as a winning contributor and an impact player outside of scoring. While he has been one of the league's better isolation scorers over the last few seasons, the 6-foot-3 shooting guard has lacked in efficiency, playmaking and defense.

With a no-trade clause, the question is whether or not Brooklyn can find a suitor that would want Thomas, as well as one he'd be willing to play for. There haven't been any teams with reported or even rumored interest.

This isn't a situation where teams would line up to acquire the star. Thomas has appeared in just 33 of the Nets' last 105 regular-season games, so there is also an injury concern. Would he also be willing to accept a limited role (potentially off the bench) if a contender traded for him?

To put the cherry on top, any team that acquires Thomas would need to be confident that he'd re-sign in the offseason, when he hits unrestricted free agency. The last thing a suitor needs is to give up assets for a half-season rental, which makes things even more dicey.