What will it take for the Nets’ Cam Thomas to play more?

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LAS VEGAS — Cam Thomas can get buckets.

But can he get a spot in the Nets’ rotation?

That’s what remains to be seen in training camp as the Nets prepare for Monday’s preseason opener against the Lakers.

Afforded inconsistent playing time by Steve Nash and then Jacque Vaughn, Thomas’ minutes have been more up-and-down than the stock market.

But the young guard sees opportunity on a Nets team that has lost Kevin Durant and Kyrie Irving. Expectations are lowered. Scoring is needed.

And that’s what he does best.

More minutes could be in the offing.

“I would hope so. But you never know — you’ve just got to stay ready at all times,” Thomas said. “Whatever the role is, if it’s still the same role or if it goes up, I’ll be ready for it, no matter what.”

Cam Thomas, who turns 22 this week, speaks to reporters at Nets training camp.Corey Sipkin for the NY Post

Thomas has backers and proponents at all levels of the Nets organization. There are several who feel with the Nets’ need for scoring, the right time for Thomas could be right now.

“His feel for the game has gotten better,” Nic Claxton said. “What he can do, the way he can put the ball in the rim, [there are] not too many guys in the league that are as talented at doing that as he is. But he’s been really good [in camp], and hopefully we can use him this year.”

There aren’t many players more naturally gifted at scoring than Thomas is. And with his 22nd birthday not coming until Friday, there are even fewer his age.

In February, Thomas surpassed Allen Iverson as the youngest player in NBA history with three straight 40-point games. The Nets need that kind of offensive punch.

“Cam Thomas is a big-time scorer,” Spencer Dinwiddie said. “He has the ability to get in the paint, make reads. He’s been distributing the ball well, playing at a high level. I think he’s gotten stronger. He’s definitely in shape, with the roster and [Vaughn] preaching conditioning. He’s just been playing at a super-high level. His ability to score the ball, it’s one of the best in the league.”

Vaughn has the ultimate decision of just how to squeeze Thomas into the rotation and how much.

Cam Thomas is guarded by Joel Embiid during a brief appearance in the Nets’ playoff series against the 76ers.Charles Wenzelberg/New York Post

The aforementioned conditioning could have been an issue. Sources have told The Post that Thomas, who is 6-foot-3 and listed at 210 pounds, came back from the summer over the Nets’ target weight.

But it wasn’t egregiously so.

Thomas, who always has been solidly built, wanted to add muscle to handle the rigors of the NBA season, and may have had to readjust some of those pounds upon his return.

“I put on about 10 pounds or so,” Thomas said. “I feel good. It really hasn’t hindered me at all. I feel like I move faster. I’m definitely stronger. I feel better with that.

“I put on muscle weight. That’s just me and my plan that I wanted to do. I wanted to put on more weight and see how it felt. I’m still 21. I’m playing against grown dudes, 30-, 35-year-olds, so I’ve got to get a little stronger, I felt like. I definitely put on more muscle, and I feel great. It’s the best I’ve felt in a while, honestly.”

An isolated issue

But more than fitness, Thomas has to prove fit.

When pressed by The Post on Thomas’ playing time, Vaughn implied it wasn’t about his ability to score — nobody doubts that — but the manner in which he does it.

“He does have a skill of being able to play isolation basketball and get a bucket: That’s proven,” Vaughn said. “For us as a team going forward, we’ve got to ask ourselves, are we good enough — do we have the personnel around us? do we have the ability? — to play isolation basketball and that be OK for us to win?

Nets coach Jacque Vaughn, here speaking with Lonnie Walker IV, said Cam Thomas’ isolation scoring may not be conducive to the teams winning games.Corey Sipkin for the NY Post

“Those are the questions I’ve got to ask myself and present to the group. So I’m always thinking group-wise. What situations can we be in over and over again as the season goes along — not just sporadic in games — and put ourselves in a position to win basketball games? I don’t think we can play isolation basketball and win basketball games on a consistent basis.

“This team is built around the versatility and the depth of the team, and we’ll have to use all that while also agreeing and notifying the rest of the group that there are some individuals who they’re going to have the basketball in their hands and they have a talent.

“[Thomas] has a talent that’s going to be used on both ends of the floor, and that’s what he’s going to be asked of. But [it’s] always performance-based.”

With the Nets having traded Durant and Irving, scoring will be at a premium this season. For the Nets to compensate, they will have to play a stingier brand of defense that feeds a more egalitarian style of offense.

It remains to be seen whether Thomas can lend himself to either.

“When you’re with max players, there’s so much focus on them that you really have to play around them and complement them,” Dinwiddie said. “You have to complement their talents because it’s all based on them. We have a guy in Mikal [Bridges] who might make an All-Star team. We’ve got Ben [Simmons] who might make an All-Star team. You have stars here, but not necessarily superstars. It’s probably a little more of a collective than hyper-focused on two guys.

The Nets offense continues to move on from relying on Kevin Durant.USA TODAY Sports

“Maybe that does provide more time to be able to play. Obviously since we don’t have our picks [owed to the Rockets from the initial James Harden trade], we’re trying to win. So at the end of the day, [Vaughn] is going to play who he feels like is going to give him the best chance of winning.

“But Cam Thomas is one of the best scorers on this roster. He has one of those natural, instinctive abilities to score with some of the best players in the league. I’m hopeful that he does get every opportunity that he deserves.”

Dinwiddie averaged 1.20 points per possession on isolation plays for the Nets last season (it was 0.99 in Dallas before he arrived in the Irving trade). Bridges mustered 1.09 for the Nets. The next-highest on this roster? Thomas at 1.04.

But Dinwiddie, along with Simmons, is the Nets’ top playmaker. Bridges, like Simmons, also has been a Defensive Player of the Year runner-up.

Thomas, who excels as an isolation player and midrange threat, is going to have to continue to round out his scoring as well as improve his passing and defense.

“Improvement comes with playing and just doing it a little bit more, as far as the playmaking aspect,” Thomas said. “I feel like most of the time when I come in, they want me to score, put the ball in the hoop to provide that spark and get us going. That was really the main thing [last year].

“But this year, if I have a more prominent role, obviously I’m going to add that [playmaking] because that’s something I want to do, I want to work on. And obviously playing on both ends. Those are really the main things.”

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A drop in the bucket Spencer Dinwiddie said of Cam Thomas, “I’m hopeful that he does get every opportunity that he deserves.”Corey Sipkin for the NY Post

Thomas is right in that he simply will need more time to work on those aspects.

He logged just 39 minutes last season with Bridges. In 118 minutes with Simmons, he posted an encouraging plus-4.37 net rating with a 120 offensive rating.

“Since I last saw him, he’s grown tremendously, he’s matured a lot,” Simmons said. “I think he’s just understanding how to be a professional and get better. He hasn’t had a normal start to his career in terms of everything going on. … But he’s fine. He’s doing great, putting in the work every day. He’s been very consistent. So I’m happy for him, excited for him to play.”

Thomas briefly carried the offense on a threadbare Nets roster while Durant and Irving were being dealt but their replacements had yet to arrive.

He scored 44 points in a Feb. 4 win over Washington, 47 in a loss to the Clippers and finished with 43 the next night in Bridges’ and Cam Johnson’s Suns swan song.

But once Bridges and Johnson joined the lineup on Feb. 11, Thomas saw his playing time slashed again. He averaged just 17.3 minutes the rest of the way with eight DNPs, and didn’t start again until the regular-season finale.

Fittingly, back in the lineup, he poured in 46.

Cam Thomas scored 43 points against Cameron Johnson, Mikal Bridges and the Suns to cap a string of three straight 40-point games in February.Robert Sabo for the NY Post

“I’ve been in similar-type situations to that,” Claxton said. “Your professionalism can be tested when you’re young, and it has for him. But one thing I see from him, even when he’s not playing, he’s showing up every day. He’s working extremely hard. And we’re going to need scoring. We’re going to need shot creators.”

Thomas made four starts last season, and they showed both sides of the coin. He poured in 39 points per game — but somehow produced a minus-0.9 net rating.

The 14 times he logged at least 27 minutes, he averaged 27.7 points on 47.8 percent shooting from 3-point range.

Both the numbers and the eye test show the more time the young guard is given to cook, he’s not only more prolific but actually more efficient. On offense, at least.

Thomas, who boosted his 3-point shooting from 27 percent as a rookie to 38.3 percent last season, has worked on his passing. He had a nice lay-off to rookie Noah Clowney this week in practice. Former LSU teammate Trendon Watford, who is with the Nets in training camp, has noted the growth.

“He’s one of the best scorers I’ve played with,” Watford said. “And just seeing him stay professional and stay ready, and he’s taken big leaps on both ends of the floor and he’s adding even playmaking into his arsenal. So, just seeing his game develop over the last two years while I was in Portland, it’s been great to watch.”

It’s something many Nets fans hope to watch more of.