NBA Notes: Nets, Cam Thomas, Mavericks, Tyus Jones, Bulls, Nick Richards

Nets

The Nets are officially moving on from Cam Thomas.

After failing to find a trade partner before the deadline, Brooklyn is waiving the fifth-year guard, according to Shams Charania of ESPN.

Assuming Thomas clears waivers, he will be free to sign with any team that has both roster space and room under its hard cap.

There were signs this was coming. Thomas did not travel with the team to Orlando and was listed as out for personal reasons. He also held a de facto no-trade clause after signing his qualifying offer last summer, limiting the Nets’ flexibility.

The Cavaliers and Bucks were loosely linked, but nothing materialized.

Per Ian Begley of SNY.tv, Thomas and his camp were hoping for this outcome if no trade emerged. Thomas echoed that sentiment to Marc J. Spears of Andscape.

“Super excited ready to actually help and contribute to another team,” Thomas said.

A proven scorer, Thomas has averaged double figures when healthy, but injuries limited him to 25 games last season and 24 this year. With no long-term deal in place, a split felt inevitable.

Mavericks

The Mavericks have landed the point guard they chased last summer.

After acquiring Tyus Jones from Orlando earlier this week, the Hornets agreed to flip him to Dallas, sources tell Charania.

Charlotte will receive Malaki Branham and generate a $7 million trade exception. No picks are involved, per Christian Clark of The Athletic.

Dallas pursued Jones in free agency but could not match the $7 million offer he received from the Magic, according to Jake Fischer of The Stein Line.

The Mavs pivoted to D’Angelo Russell, who was later moved to Washington in the Anthony Davis deal.

Jones struggled shooting the ball in Orlando but remains one of the league’s most reliable ball-handlers. With Kyrie Irving sidelined, Jones is expected to play a meaningful role immediately.

Branham, a former first-round pick, saw his role diminish after early starts in San Antonio and is now on an expiring $5 million deal.

Bulls

The Bulls have been pulled into a multi-team shuffle involving the Bucks and Suns.

Originally a Bucks-Suns deal, the trade expanded to include Chicago. Center Nick Richards will head to the Bulls instead of Milwaukee, while forward Ousmane Dieng goes to the Bucks.

Richards could see increased minutes in Chicago after the Bulls moved Nikola Vucevic earlier this week.

In the original framework, Phoenix acquired Cole Anthony and Amir Coffey, while sending Richards and Nigel Hayes-Davis out. The timing followed Milwaukee’s message to suitors that Giannis Antetokounmpo was staying put.

For Phoenix, it’s largely a financial maneuver. Cap expert Yossi Gozlan notes the Suns drop roughly $2.5 million below the tax and create a $5 million trade exception. Per John Gambadoro of Arizona Sports 98.7, the move also opens a path to promote two-way guard Jamaree Bouyea.

Richards could factor into Milwaukee’s frontcourt rotation, while Hayes-Davis is viewed as a likely release candidate.