CHARLOTTE, N.C. — The injury-plagued Nets may be getting some much-needed physicality back.
Cam Thomas and Dayron Sharpe have been upgraded to expected availability on the injury report for Saturday’s game against the Hornets.
Thomas, a prolific scorer, suffered a right ankle and midfoot sprain in a blowout win over Memphis on Feb. 26 and has missed the last six consecutive games.
He is averaging 20.9 points per game, just a few percentage points behind team leader Mikal Bridges.
In his absence, opponents were able to game plan for Bridges and take away his offense.
That burden may be eased if Thomas returns.
Sources recently told the Post that the Nets are aiming to have Thomas back for one of these games over the weekend.
The Nets will play the Cavaliers on Sunday in Cleveland for a back-to-back game.
Meanwhile, Sharp was also diagnosed with a likely contusion on his right wrist.
Sharpe missed the past two games.
The young center suffered his first injury on March 4 in a hard fall against the Grizzlies.
Due to his role as a backup to Nic Claxton, Sharpe is only averaging 15.6 minutes per game.
But he’s second in the league in rebounding percentage (.200) and offensive rebounding percentage (.160), and the Nets are missing his size and strength on the glass.
Johnson remains out with a sprained right ankle.
The sweet-shooting forward was sent off after playing just eight minutes in Tuesday’s game against Philadelphia.
He underwent an MRI on Wednesday, which confirmed a sprain, and did not travel with the team for the start of this season’s six-game road trip in Detroit.
The Nets last faced Charlotte on Nov. 30, when they suffered their worst loss of the season, 129-128, ending their winning streak at three.
The Nets allowed 21-of-36 3-pointers, a percentage of .583 that was their highest all season.
And despite entering Saturday with a five-game losing streak, second-worst in the NBA, the Hornets are probably a better team than the last time they met.
Charlotte has the seventh-highest defensive rating in the league over the past 10 games.
Ben Simmons (left lumbar nerve impingement), rookie Darik Whitehead (left shin stress reaction), two-way Jacob Gilliard (G League), and two-way Jaylen Martin (G League) all played against the Hornets. Can not.
Dennis Schroder’s 31 points against Detroit on Thursday weren’t just a season high, they came on just two missed shots, with the point guard going 12-of-14 from the field and 6 from behind the arc. I succeeded in 5 of the books.
