http://www.sacbee.com/content/sports/story/13896068p-14734872c.html
Kevin Martin is having a rough time, but others have before him
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Two years into the job, into what he hopes will be a lengthy, fulfilling career, and Kevin Martin is still deciphering the job description. The second-year guard does a little of this, a little of that, but except for infrequent outbursts of potential, not enough of anything to warrant extensive playing time.
In his shortest outing of the season Monday night against the San Antonio Spurs - a chilling four minutes, and all in the opening half - the Kings' 2004 first-round draft choice performed like an overly zealous rookie straining to make a favorable first impression.
He forced a leaning, off-balance jumper within seconds of stepping onto the floor. He bit on one of Manu Ginobili's innumerable ball fakes. He tried to answer with another hurried jumper, the airball from the right baseline, this time soaring a foot above the rim. Soon enough he was back on the bench. Back on the bench, where he spent most of his first season.
And now he's thinking about it. Probably thinking way too much about it.
"I'm pressing," Martin admitted the other night while seated in the locker room, his right leg bouncing to the beat of his words. "I've only had one really horrible game (Seattle on Sunday). But now that I'm getting minutes, I'm not as consistent as I need to be. I'm still trying to figure out what I do best. I just need to get out there and play my game."
But exactly what is that? Martin's game is amorphous, enigmatic. Is he a scorer? A defender? A rebounder? A passer? A creator? A shooter? Is he the tantalizing athlete who shoots into gaps for timely steals, outleaps opponents for loose balls, insinuates his skinny frame into scrums for rebounds - all of which he does, it seems, almost exclusively during practice? Is he perhaps best suited for a day job?
Kings players and officials, in fact, speak openly and often of a daring, beguiling Martin, yet are equally perplexed by what happens at tipoff. KMart by night becomes a completely different player. Instead of attacking with the free-spirited assertiveness that characterized his three years at Western Carolina, the long-limbed, 6-foot-7, 187-pounder becomes tense, tentative. He becomes reactive rather than instinctive. He becomes another guy fighting for a job.
"This is a time of testing," said assistant Pete Carril. "Kevin has analyzed his problem very well. It's all about confidence, and it's a hard thing to put your finger on. He does so many things reasonably well. But you have to go out there and prove it. He gets a little nervous during games. You say, 'It's just not coming.' You're waiting for it to happen. And I feel it's going to happen. But more importantly, does he?"
Martin is hardly the first Kings prospect to suffer from the yips. Peja Stojakovic has been timid on more than one occasion. And not so long ago, the immensely respected Doug Christie volunteered that he "choked" during Game 7 of the memorable Kings-Lakers Western Conference finals. But Christie - inherently a much more gifted passer than Martin - also vowed that he would never again succumb to the pressure. And he never did. He was easily the team's most effective player in the 2003 postseason, his all-court contributions reminiscent of what Kings executives initially projected for Martin.
And it could still happen. This is Year II, the engaging, unfailingly polite Martin only 22. Besides, this also is a youngster who knows exactly where to turn for answers: After practices and before games, the Zanesville, Ohio, native routinely seeks the counsel of his coaches, most often Carril. The two can be seen seated on the bench in the still-empty Arco Arena, gesturing, discussing, working. The kid loves to work.
During the offseason, Martin adhered to a conditioning program that added 15 pounds of muscle to his once painfully thin frame, and often accompanied by the departed Bobby Jackson, participated in daily tutorials with Kings coaches to improve his ballhandling skills and alter his unorthodox shooting style. At Carril's behest, as he squares to shoot, Martin now holds the ball more to the right, no longer impeding his vision.
"I like his attitude," said Kings president Geoff Petrie. "He wants to play, wants to get better. He doesn't have any physical fear in that he'll take the ball into a crowd or stay in front of his man. He just needs to relax. I have always felt with young players, when they get overly anxious, just try to get involved in other areas. Get a tip-in, make an easy basket, take a charge rather than constantly worrying about making shots."
Can he play? Can he earn Rick Adelman's confidence, wrest minutes from his teammates, among them feisty newcomer Francisco García? Will his game gain a more distinct, definable form?
The questions are there, no doubt about it. But so, too, are the opportunities. Martin will get his chance.
About the writer: The Bee's Ailene Voisin can be reached at (916) 321-1208 or avoisin@sacbee.com.
Kevin Martin is having a rough time, but others have before him
By Ailene Voisin -- Bee Sports Columnist
Published 2:15 am PST Wednesday, November 23, 2005
Two years into the job, into what he hopes will be a lengthy, fulfilling career, and Kevin Martin is still deciphering the job description. The second-year guard does a little of this, a little of that, but except for infrequent outbursts of potential, not enough of anything to warrant extensive playing time.
In his shortest outing of the season Monday night against the San Antonio Spurs - a chilling four minutes, and all in the opening half - the Kings' 2004 first-round draft choice performed like an overly zealous rookie straining to make a favorable first impression.
He forced a leaning, off-balance jumper within seconds of stepping onto the floor. He bit on one of Manu Ginobili's innumerable ball fakes. He tried to answer with another hurried jumper, the airball from the right baseline, this time soaring a foot above the rim. Soon enough he was back on the bench. Back on the bench, where he spent most of his first season.
And now he's thinking about it. Probably thinking way too much about it.
"I'm pressing," Martin admitted the other night while seated in the locker room, his right leg bouncing to the beat of his words. "I've only had one really horrible game (Seattle on Sunday). But now that I'm getting minutes, I'm not as consistent as I need to be. I'm still trying to figure out what I do best. I just need to get out there and play my game."
But exactly what is that? Martin's game is amorphous, enigmatic. Is he a scorer? A defender? A rebounder? A passer? A creator? A shooter? Is he the tantalizing athlete who shoots into gaps for timely steals, outleaps opponents for loose balls, insinuates his skinny frame into scrums for rebounds - all of which he does, it seems, almost exclusively during practice? Is he perhaps best suited for a day job?
Kings players and officials, in fact, speak openly and often of a daring, beguiling Martin, yet are equally perplexed by what happens at tipoff. KMart by night becomes a completely different player. Instead of attacking with the free-spirited assertiveness that characterized his three years at Western Carolina, the long-limbed, 6-foot-7, 187-pounder becomes tense, tentative. He becomes reactive rather than instinctive. He becomes another guy fighting for a job.
"This is a time of testing," said assistant Pete Carril. "Kevin has analyzed his problem very well. It's all about confidence, and it's a hard thing to put your finger on. He does so many things reasonably well. But you have to go out there and prove it. He gets a little nervous during games. You say, 'It's just not coming.' You're waiting for it to happen. And I feel it's going to happen. But more importantly, does he?"
Martin is hardly the first Kings prospect to suffer from the yips. Peja Stojakovic has been timid on more than one occasion. And not so long ago, the immensely respected Doug Christie volunteered that he "choked" during Game 7 of the memorable Kings-Lakers Western Conference finals. But Christie - inherently a much more gifted passer than Martin - also vowed that he would never again succumb to the pressure. And he never did. He was easily the team's most effective player in the 2003 postseason, his all-court contributions reminiscent of what Kings executives initially projected for Martin.
And it could still happen. This is Year II, the engaging, unfailingly polite Martin only 22. Besides, this also is a youngster who knows exactly where to turn for answers: After practices and before games, the Zanesville, Ohio, native routinely seeks the counsel of his coaches, most often Carril. The two can be seen seated on the bench in the still-empty Arco Arena, gesturing, discussing, working. The kid loves to work.
During the offseason, Martin adhered to a conditioning program that added 15 pounds of muscle to his once painfully thin frame, and often accompanied by the departed Bobby Jackson, participated in daily tutorials with Kings coaches to improve his ballhandling skills and alter his unorthodox shooting style. At Carril's behest, as he squares to shoot, Martin now holds the ball more to the right, no longer impeding his vision.
"I like his attitude," said Kings president Geoff Petrie. "He wants to play, wants to get better. He doesn't have any physical fear in that he'll take the ball into a crowd or stay in front of his man. He just needs to relax. I have always felt with young players, when they get overly anxious, just try to get involved in other areas. Get a tip-in, make an easy basket, take a charge rather than constantly worrying about making shots."
Can he play? Can he earn Rick Adelman's confidence, wrest minutes from his teammates, among them feisty newcomer Francisco García? Will his game gain a more distinct, definable form?
The questions are there, no doubt about it. But so, too, are the opportunities. Martin will get his chance.
About the writer: The Bee's Ailene Voisin can be reached at (916) 321-1208 or avoisin@sacbee.com.
