He did it once more.
One sport after setting a brand new career-high, second-year scorer Cam Thomas eclipsed it within the Nets’ 124-116 loss to the Los Angeles Clippers on Monday.
Thomas scored a brand new excessive of 47 factors in 39 minutes, capturing 15-of-29 from the sector and 7-of-11 from downtown. The Clippers tried a number of ways to decelerate the 21-year-old guard, from face-guarding him the total size of the courtroom with athletic wing Terrance Mann, to chasing him across the courtroom with vaunted defensive stalwart Kawhi Leonard.
The Clippers even blitzed Thomas on the high of the important thing and despatched doubles at him when he drove to the rim.
None of it labored.
Thomas joined an unique checklist of elite NBA gamers who’ve scored 40 or extra factors in consecutive video games earlier than turning age 22: That checklist contains LeBron James, Kevin Durant, Luka Doncic, Allen Iverson and Andrew Wiggins.
Not even Kyrie Irving achieved that feat as the principle attraction on the Cleveland Cavaliers earlier than LeBron returned dwelling.
Which begs the query: Can Thomas, a clearly gifted scorer, substitute Irving’s level manufacturing now that the embattled star guard has been shipped to Dallas?
Two video games towards the Wizards and Clippers isn’t sufficiently big of a pattern dimension. Thomas might want to exploit among the NBA’s premier defenses earlier than the Nets hand him the important thing to the dominion.
Edmond Sumner received his second consecutive begin and scored 23 factors on 9-of-17 capturing. Royce O’Neale made 5 of his first six threes within the first quarter then didn’t rating once more. Nic Claxton completed with 15 factors and 16 rebounds, however the Nets did not generate offense elsewhere on the roster.
Leonard and Paul George mixed for 53 factors — simply six greater than Thomas scored on his personal.
The Nets play once more on Tuesday within the second sport of a back-to-back after they host the Phoenix Suns. Ben Simmons is predicted to return from a five-game absence resulting from knee soreness on Tuesday.
If Thomas can have one other high-scoring sport towards a Suns workforce anticipated to be near full well being, he’ll make a case for extra minutes now that Irving is out of city.
It’s unclear whether or not or not Spencer Dinwiddie or Dorian Finney-Smith will play on Tuesday as the brand new arrivals within the Irving deal.
()
Source: www.bostonherald.com