After Cam Thomas scored a career-high 44-points in a comeback win over the Washington Wizards on Saturday, Brooklyn Nets head coach Jacque Vaugh said the guard joked that he was the all-time leading scorer of Brooklyn's “stay ready” group.

Thomas has been in and out of the rotation this year while attempting to fill a complementary role alongside Kyrie Irving and Kevin Durant. Irving was traded to the Dallas Mavericks Sunday after missing Saturday's game following his trade request. That left the 21-year-old Thomas to shoulder a heavy burden against a top-10 defensive team in the Clippers Tuesday.

Thomas responded by setting a career-high with 47 points on 7-of-11 shooting from three in a 124-116 loss. The sophomore guard joins elite company with his second straight offensive explosion: Thomas and LeBron James are the youngest players in NBA history to record consecutive 40-point games.

It is somewhat unprecedented for a player who has struggled to find minutes to have his name alongside arguably the best to ever do it. However, Thomas wasn't all that impressed to be in James' company:

“I'm glad to have my name mentioned with that guy, even though I’m a Kobe guy. So, if you said Kobe I would've been more excited,” Thomas joked. “No, I’m kidding, but it’s still great company. He’s about to break the all-time scoring record in two games or one game. So I’m just glad to have my name mentioned with him this young.”

“So I hope I can keep it going and keep having my name with those guys.”

With Irving on his way to Dallas, Thomas steps into a potentially expanded role as Brooklyn searches for scoring alongside Durant. Anyone who has followed the guard throughout his career knows putting the ball in the hole is no issue. The LSU product led all freshmen in scoring at 23.0 points per game during his lone college season. He then earned the scoring title during both of his first two years in the summer league.

Following Cam Thomas' second-consecutive offensive outburst, head coach Jacque Vaughn was asked if the young guard should have played more early this season:

“I don’t know, maybe,” Vaughn replied. “I have some new school and old school in me. Hopefully I’m able to use it at the right time. I think for young guys to go through something so they can get to the other side. There’s something to that. There’s something to not playing and putting in the work and doing it when you don’t get your results at your timing.

“So (Cam) has put in a lot of work and he’s getting rewarded for it. And maybe it wasn’t at the timing of others, maybe it wasn’t even at his timing. But he’s taking advantage of it and sometimes that’s just the way it works out.”

Despite the pair of career-best performances, it is no guarantee that Thomas is a fixture in the rotation moving forward. With Durant as their primary option, the Nets have been searching for spot-up shooting and defense the last three seasons, areas Thomas has traditionally struggled. It remains to be seen how much Dinwiddie will shoulder the ball-handling responsibilities upon his arrival. Regardless, Thomas said his mindset as the leader of Brooklyn's “stay ready” group won't change amid the roster shakeup.

“I just love to hoop man,” he said. “Obviously I want to play in real games; who doesn't? So really, I just try to stay in the moment, and when I do get my opportunity I try to make the most of it.”

Spencer Dinwiddie and Dorian Finney-Smith will make their Nets season debuts either Tuesday versus the Phoenix Suns or Thursday versus the Chicago Bulls. Durant underwent the second evaluation on his sprained MCL Monday with the team expected to provide an update Tuesday. Thomas will have an opportunity for round three when the Nets return to the Barclays Center for a back-to-back against the Suns tomorrow.