Jan. 26, 2026, 11:25 p.m. ET
The Brooklyn Nets are in the midst of a five-game, west-coast road trip and so far, the trip is not going well after Sunday’s 126-89 loss at the Los Angeles Clippers. Brooklyn has been having a rough January as both ends of the floor have been lacking, but the good news is that the Nets should be getting some reinforcements to help with those issues.
The Nets announced on Monday that guards Cam Thomas and Nolan Traore are probable for Tuesday’s game at the Phoenix Suns after missing Sunday’s loss at the Clippers for their respective reasons. Thomas missed Sunday’s action due to a left ankle sprain while Traore was missing from action due to an illness that he picked up at some point prior to the Clippers game.
With Traore and Thomas out of the rotation, Nets head coach Jordi Fernandez turned to Ben Saraf and Tyrese Martin as the backup guards, but Sunday’s game was a blowout before the first quarter ended. Saraf saw his first NBA action since Dec. 6, but he was one of many players on Brooklyn’s roster that struggled against Kawhi Leonard, James Harden, and the Clippers.
Moving on with the injury report, the Nets announced that forward Noah Clowney remains out of the lineup due to back soreness, sidelining him for the second straight game. With Clowney out of action, forward Michael Porter Jr. was to the starting power forward spot, allowing veteran Terance Mann to be the starting small forward with rookies Egor Demin and Drake Powell as the starting guards.
Lastly, Martin is listed as questionable for Tuesday’s game at Phoenix due to left knee soreness, meaning that someone like Saraf could be set for some of those minutes as one of the backup guards. However, if Traore and Thomas are able to play, there may not be enough minutes for Saraf unless Fernandez is willing to give playing time to 11 guys, something that he hasn’t typically done this season.
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