1 hot take (no matter how insane it sounds) and provide your reasoning. I’ll go first

Brooklyn Nets:

I can see us being somewhere been 16th-20th in the standing rather than us being in the bottom top 5 (maybe I’m right maybe I’m wrong and we’re awful). I think that’ll be true in large part due to our defense next szn but even more so bc of Cam Thomas - which leads me to my main point

Disclaimer: this will give major homer/delusional vibes. Feel free to berate me

My actual hot take is that CT will be MIP and recognized as a fringe superstar next year. However, the narrative will be that his style of play won’t win enough games

I think he’s on a monster trajectory and will be a future champion and league MVP all with the Nets if we put the right pieces around him

Why?

First off, his resume speaks for itself

1. #4 all time freshman scorer @ LSU

2. #1 all time leading scorer @ Oak Hill Academy w 2,219 pts

3. most points scored by someone 22 and younger and 30 mins last season in the NBA

You may have known this already but this just proves he can score and yea we know that. That’s just the talent part. Personally, I look at the individual himself more than just the stats

So second of all he has all the right makings of a star imo,

1. incredible work ethic as cited by his peers and coaches

2. incredible talent

3. willingness to improve and expand his game (as we’ve seen this year w passing)

4. overall good character (wouldn’t expect trouble from CT)

5. leadership (which imo he explained multiple times cited by Ollie and his teammates)

6. KD & Kyrie think very highly of him and still do

More importantly and third of all

Nothing impressed me more than this last point:

CT has been given all the reasons to not succeed

1. DNPs after dropping 40 3 times in a row

2. Slid to the 7th man & 8th man spot bc of rebounding (then immediately going on a slump) despite playing well

3. Not building around him. No public encouragement, recognition, or marketing him despite his successes (until recently)

4. Inconsistent role and minutes

The moment he was a starter consistently he showed out. Touting numbers such as 26.4 ppg, 3.4 assists, 4 rebounds on 45% FG, 44% on catch and shoot 3s, 36% from 3FG, 89% FT and 57.5% TS (when playing 30+ mins)

My point is - while others in his class were given multiple chances to succeed despite their shortcomings, Cam Thomas was short changed and given limited chances even with his success

And now let’s fast forwarding to this offseason. Somehow, in a dramatic turn of events, he now is the face of this franchise. He will now have unlimited opportunities to mature, grow his craft, and show it all on the court

I’ll welcome all slander if mods keep this post up and hope to hear your crazy takes