Brooklyn Nets guard Cam Thomas is expected to return on Thursday night against the Charlotte Hornets after missing the team's last nine games with a left ankle sprain. The Nets listed Thomas as probable on their initial injury report Wednesday.

Thomas participated in full-court, five-on-five scrimmages following Brooklyn's shootaround Tuesday, according to head coach Jacque Vaughn.

After spending most of his first two seasons on the bench, the 23-year-old emerged as one of the NBA's top scorers in the opening weeks of the 2023-24 season. Thomas became the second-youngest player in NBA history with three straight 30-point games to begin a season, trailing only Shaquille O'Neal. Prior to his injury, Thomas was averaging 28.7 points per game, the ninth-most in the NBA.

Thomas' prolific half-court scoring was the focal point of a Nets offense that ranked ninth in the league before he was sidelined. In his last full game before spraining his ankle, the 6-foot-3 guard dropped 45 points on 17-of-33 shooting during a last-second loss to the Milwaukee Bucks.

With Thomas and Ben Simmons sidelined, Spencer Dinwiddie has taken full control of Brooklyn's ball-handling responsibilities. After playing a primarily off-ball role earlier this year, the 10-year veteran has averaged 18.0 points on 38/33/86 shooting splits over his last nine appearances.

Dinwiddie's 7.3 assists per game during that span rank 11th in the NBA and his 3.84 assist-to-turnover ratio ranks fifth amongst 15 players averaging seven or more assists during that period.

After missing Brooklyn's last five games, Dennis Smith Jr. is listed as questionable vs. Charlotte with a lower back sprain. The first-year Net was initially listed as questionable for Tuesday's matchup with Toronto before being ruled out shortly before tipoff.

Vaughn said Smith Jr. participated in scrimmages alongside Thomas on Tuesday and was “trending in a direction of playing soon.”