Nets’ Cam Thomas ‘can’t wait’ for Madison Square Garden redemption

Cam Thomas says he doesn’t treat the Knicks any differently than any other team, or the Garden any differently than any other building.

But his game says otherwise.

Instead of withering under the spotlight, the young Nets guard blossoms into a star every time he takes the stage in the world’s most famous arena.

Friday marked Thomas’ second 40-point performance at the Garden in just over six months, and the Nets could use a third in Sunday’s rematch.

“Yeah, he’s not afraid of the bright lights,” Nets coach Jordi Fernandez said of Thomas. “And I can tell you that from the first shot he took (on Friday). And his teammates knew we had to find him. I tried to do my best to help him, to find him. Obviously, they put OG (Anunoby) on him, who is a very good defender and very physical, and he still found a way to score.

“The good thing is you have a chance to do it again against the same team. They’re going to feel the same way and then he’s going to have to come back and perform again. Such a great performance by CT, and a lot happy because from the beginning he kept us alive.”

Thomas poured in 43 points on Friday to surpass Knicks star Jalen Brunson.

He shot 16-for-22 and a scorching 7-for-10 from deep, only to see Brunson hit the go-ahead 3-pointer with just six seconds left.

“It’s crazy, one of the top guards in the league. You always try to play well against those kinds of games,” said Thomas, who didn’t take the final shot for the Nets.

With no timeouts, they had to punt the ball and ended up with a Dennis Schroder miss at the buzzer, Thomas never got a chance to answer.

But he will get his chance to answer in Sunday’s rematch, with Brooklyn playing without Nic Claxton and having lost four of their last five.

“Just staying aggressive,” Thomas shrugged. “They guarded hard, switched, switched, multiple defenders on me and they blitzed. So I just had to figure it out. But I really just wanted to come out, be aggressive and then just set the tone early.

“First (NBA) Cup game, we just want to set the tone early. So I did a good job with it, decent job with it. But you always want to win at the end of the day. So, but the good thing about it, we play them again on Sunday so we can get some redemption. So I can’t wait for that.”

Thomas’ 41-point outing against the Knicks on April 12 had been the highest scoring effort by a Net at the Garden.

Friday’s performance not only surpassed that, but tied John Williamson for the franchise’s second-highest all-time against the Knicks, trailing only Kevin Durant’s 53 in 2022.

Only one other visitor has more 40-point games at the Garden before turning 24: Wilt Chamberlain. So does the laconic Thomas enjoy being a Knick villain?

“No, I’ve never really been the type of person to do that. I just try to play whoever is out there playing wherever we play. I just try to give (my best), put my best foot forward and play the best to the best of my ability, whoever it is,” said Thomas, who, however, admitted he enjoyed a game-recognizing-game moment with NFL greats Tom Brady.

“(It) was kind of dope to see Tom Brady. I was a big Tom Brady fan growing up. I don’t usually feel that way about people, but it was kind of dope. He gave me a little look, when I also hit a 3. So it was a really good moment for me. But it’s not really a lot to play (at the Garden); it’s just wherever I play, I want to just put my best foot forward and be aggressive and try to help the team win.”