There is no certainty about Nic Claxton’s debut… nor about Cam Thomas’ free agency

Nic Claxton was back on the field at the HSS Training Center on Saturday, but his return to the field remains unclear. “It won’t be Monday night against the Washington Wizards,” Claxton told beat writers.

“I’m making progress, feeling good and enjoying the journey,” he said after training. Both he and the Brooklyn Nets brain trust said not to worry. He will be ready for the opener against the Hawks in Atlanta, perhaps even the final preseason game on Oct. 18 against the Toronto Raptors at Barclays Center or the Philadelphia 76ers at Wells Fargo Center in Philadelphia two days earlier.

Jordi Fernandez told Beat Writers that he is pleased with the Nets center’s progress in dealing with a hamstring strain.

“I think he’s doing great,” Fernandez said when asked about Claxton’s progress. “I’m pretty sure he shared his thoughts. He completed part of training today and hopes to take part in one or two pre-season games. So again we’re going for the No. 1 game of the season, which is the top priority, and anything else he can do will be a bonus. But it’s really important for the group because we want to see him on the pitch.”

In fact, re-signing Claxton, now 25, to a $100 million deal was the Nets’ biggest offseason goal, a first step in the Nets’ ambitious rebuild.

The beat writers also caught a glimpse of Day’Ron Sharpe, Claxton’s replacement, who is out for two months. I don’t train, but I do rehab.

Without Claxton, Sharpe… and Trendon Watford… having more or less severe hamstring problems, Fernandez used his bench, moving Ben Simmons to the 5 and giving Noah Clowney and Dorian Finney-Smith significant minutes.

“I thought they did a good job with the small ball,” Claxton said. “We started slow, but you can kind of see how we want to play, play fast and be very combative in defense. So it’s kind of nice to be able to just sit and watch and then just know how I can help when I’m out on the field.”

Fernandez also wants to see Claxton as a team leader. After all, he is the longest-serving player in the squad and his contract is the largest and longest ever. Claxton says he welcomes the role.

“It’s refreshing. It’s like a breath of fresh air,” Claxton said. “Ultimately you will have a contract in mind. Having done that, I feel like now I can just go out here and mature and just lead the way I can.”

In addition to Claxton, Watford is also out. Killian Hayes, who also missed the Nets’ preseason opener on Tuesday because of hip pain, is day-to-day.

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Meanwhile, the team’s other young leader, Cam Thomas, was the subject of Erik Slater’s podcast with Brian Lewis this weekend and a separate article Lewis wrote. Lewis narrated Slater’s “Bleav.” Thomas, like Claxton last summer, will likely be the Nets’ top internal free agent. The Nets can either sign him to an extension before opening night or wait until July until they can match any offer from one of the NBA’s 29 other teams — assuming they have the cap space. The question then becomes what teams think about Thomas’ value.

“There’s no baseline whatsoever with Cam Thomas,” Lewis said. “Some scouts think he walks on water, they love him. “Oh, he’s a bucket. Oh, he’s this, he’s that.’ Others wouldn’t touch him with a ten-foot pole. They don’t want anything to do with it. No matter what he gets, they want none of it.

“To be honest, I have never seen a player like that. When I say he’s divisive, I don’t mean he’s divisive in the locker room and the guys can’t get along with him. I mean, there is no agreement whatsoever between scouts or front office personnel [on] what value he has on the market or how good a player he can be.”

In his article, Lewis quotes Thomas saying that he keeps “receipts” on those who doubt him.

“I definitely keep receipts,” Thomas told Lewis this week. “Everyone uses different things as motivation. So, you know, I have a lot of things that I’m going to use for motivation this year. And we’ll see how this goes for us. But I’m definitely ready and willing to prove people wrong this year.”

Thomas also denied the pressure of a likely lost season and the upcoming negotiations would put pressure on him.

“No, not really,” Thomas said. “I think that’s just part of your foundation, how you grew up playing basketball. Growing up, I always played winning basketball. So if we lose, I’ll just play right.

“You know you can’t win every game, but we’re going to go out there, compete and play the right way. And if it leads to wins, it leads to wins. If that’s not the case, we just have to look back and try to improve to try and get wins. So I feel like we’re going to play the right way and I’m just living with the end result. We’re going to play extremely hard and just live with the results.”