Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas just signed a one-year, $6 million qualifying offer to remain with the team and become an unrestricted free agent next year. Even if indirectly, this may have just proven that the Indiana Pacers are making the right call by seemingly pushing Bennedict Mathurin into restricted free agency next summer.
Thomas' new deal just set the market for score-first guards. He had virtually no market as a restricted free agent and had to settle for the qualifying offer just to guarantee he is on a roster next season.
While not exactly the same situation, the Pacers can look to Thomas as an idea of what could be in store for Mathurin, who is unlikely to get a rookie-scale contract extension this offseason despite being eligible for one.