http://www.sacbee.com/100/story/71119.html
K-Mart now a target
The Kings guard's development has opponents taking notice
By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 12:37 am PST Friday, November 3, 2006
Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C1
CHICAGO-On his way to board a team plane Wednesday night, Kings shooting guard Kevin Martin did as he always does after games.
He checked in with his longtime personal trainer, David Thorpe, seeking his usual postgame analysis via back-and-forth text messages.
But before Thorpe could weigh in on the Kings' season-opening 92-83 loss at Minnesota, one in which Martin led the team with 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting and was the evening's only consistent offensive threat, Martin gave his assessment.
"I was so sloppy," he wrote.
Whether Martin was accurate -- and he was, given that three of his five turnovers came in the game's most crucial late minutes -- wasn't what pleased Thorpe. It's that Martin's self-assessed report card was so brutally honest.
"It's not about personal glory," said Thorpe, who first connected with Martin when he was a freshman at Western Carolina University in 2001. "He wants to be one of the best shooting guards in the world. But it's all cloaked within helping the team win."
Thorpe's not the only one gushing pride these days, as the Kings have been thrilled to see their little-known No. 26 overall pick in the 2004 draft become one of the league's "it" names this season.
That unofficial list came last week. A general manager's survey listed Martin as the second-most-likely player to have a breakout campaign. The winner was Orlando's Dwight Howard, with the GMs somehow missing the fact that the young Magic phenom crafted his blueprint breakout last season.
Strange pick aside, it was, in no disguised terms, a sign that the mystery of Martin has transitioned into the rising-star period.
The endorsements have come in many forms for Martin, the third-year player from the tiny town of Zanesville, Ohio. There are the literal kinds, like a contract with retail chain Good Feet that carries with it a strange but relevant significance.
That duty used to belong to Peja Stojakovic, and Vlade Divac before him, and became -- in the Sacramento market -- an assignment reserved for the most beloved King.
Martin, 23, has a deal with Mercedes and even appeared on ESPN's "Outside the Lines" a few months ago, going national in an analytical way during a show about shoe deals in the league.
The Kings' endorsement, the one that truly matters, was twofold. Their confidence in Martin invariably impacted their willingness to let Bonzi Wells leave Sacramento in the offseason after Martin showed so much promise when Wells was injured.
And most recently, there were the organizational expectations going public, when Kings coach Eric Musselman said he sees no shortage of upside in Martin, who led the Kings in scoring during the Vegas Summer League and the exhibition season.
"He's going to continue to get stronger, his confidence is going to build, and eventually he's going to have to be one of our go-to guys," Musselman said. "I think he can be an All-Star in due time. If he takes the same significant jumps this year that he did last year, then you're looking at a year from now (Martin) being one of the premier players at his position."
Which, by the way, is the shoot-for-the-stars goal.
Martin has modeled himself after All-Stars from the get-go. In his younger years, he broke down tape of Detroit's Richard Hamilton, and Miami's Dwyane Wade has been his latest study subject. He has remedied every potential pitfall along the way, from his frail frame (he was 167 pounds in college and now is 190) to a jump shot so funky scouts across the league swore he had no future (he was a 48 percent shooter and shot 36.9 percent from three-point range last season).
And while Martin's current status is that of a potent complementary player, he has produced in spite of being a relatively small part of the offense.
Martin -- who has improved his defense enough to earn praise on that end, too -- estimates he has eight or nine plays in which his number is called, compared to 14 or 15 each for Ron Artest and Mike Bibby. The trouble now, though, is that he's popping up in opponents' playbooks, too.
"I'm not getting as many open looks," Martin said. "A lot of people play me differently, a lot of people get up in me, and a lot of people try to stop my drive."
In the larger sense, they haven't been able to yet.
"With players like Ron and Mike and Brad (Miller), I'm still trying to climb up the ladder, still trying to be that player I want to be," Martin said. "Last year was kind of like a breakthrough. And me and my trainer have been talking. This (season) needs to be more of a breakout."
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at samick@sacbee.com.
K-Mart now a target
The Kings guard's development has opponents taking notice
By Sam Amick - Bee Staff Writer
Last Updated 12:37 am PST Friday, November 3, 2006
Story appeared in SPORTS section, Page C1
CHICAGO-On his way to board a team plane Wednesday night, Kings shooting guard Kevin Martin did as he always does after games.
He checked in with his longtime personal trainer, David Thorpe, seeking his usual postgame analysis via back-and-forth text messages.
But before Thorpe could weigh in on the Kings' season-opening 92-83 loss at Minnesota, one in which Martin led the team with 23 points on 9-of-15 shooting and was the evening's only consistent offensive threat, Martin gave his assessment.
"I was so sloppy," he wrote.
Whether Martin was accurate -- and he was, given that three of his five turnovers came in the game's most crucial late minutes -- wasn't what pleased Thorpe. It's that Martin's self-assessed report card was so brutally honest.
"It's not about personal glory," said Thorpe, who first connected with Martin when he was a freshman at Western Carolina University in 2001. "He wants to be one of the best shooting guards in the world. But it's all cloaked within helping the team win."
Thorpe's not the only one gushing pride these days, as the Kings have been thrilled to see their little-known No. 26 overall pick in the 2004 draft become one of the league's "it" names this season.
That unofficial list came last week. A general manager's survey listed Martin as the second-most-likely player to have a breakout campaign. The winner was Orlando's Dwight Howard, with the GMs somehow missing the fact that the young Magic phenom crafted his blueprint breakout last season.
Strange pick aside, it was, in no disguised terms, a sign that the mystery of Martin has transitioned into the rising-star period.
The endorsements have come in many forms for Martin, the third-year player from the tiny town of Zanesville, Ohio. There are the literal kinds, like a contract with retail chain Good Feet that carries with it a strange but relevant significance.
That duty used to belong to Peja Stojakovic, and Vlade Divac before him, and became -- in the Sacramento market -- an assignment reserved for the most beloved King.
Martin, 23, has a deal with Mercedes and even appeared on ESPN's "Outside the Lines" a few months ago, going national in an analytical way during a show about shoe deals in the league.
The Kings' endorsement, the one that truly matters, was twofold. Their confidence in Martin invariably impacted their willingness to let Bonzi Wells leave Sacramento in the offseason after Martin showed so much promise when Wells was injured.
And most recently, there were the organizational expectations going public, when Kings coach Eric Musselman said he sees no shortage of upside in Martin, who led the Kings in scoring during the Vegas Summer League and the exhibition season.
"He's going to continue to get stronger, his confidence is going to build, and eventually he's going to have to be one of our go-to guys," Musselman said. "I think he can be an All-Star in due time. If he takes the same significant jumps this year that he did last year, then you're looking at a year from now (Martin) being one of the premier players at his position."
Which, by the way, is the shoot-for-the-stars goal.
Martin has modeled himself after All-Stars from the get-go. In his younger years, he broke down tape of Detroit's Richard Hamilton, and Miami's Dwyane Wade has been his latest study subject. He has remedied every potential pitfall along the way, from his frail frame (he was 167 pounds in college and now is 190) to a jump shot so funky scouts across the league swore he had no future (he was a 48 percent shooter and shot 36.9 percent from three-point range last season).
And while Martin's current status is that of a potent complementary player, he has produced in spite of being a relatively small part of the offense.
Martin -- who has improved his defense enough to earn praise on that end, too -- estimates he has eight or nine plays in which his number is called, compared to 14 or 15 each for Ron Artest and Mike Bibby. The trouble now, though, is that he's popping up in opponents' playbooks, too.
"I'm not getting as many open looks," Martin said. "A lot of people play me differently, a lot of people get up in me, and a lot of people try to stop my drive."
In the larger sense, they haven't been able to yet.
"With players like Ron and Mike and Brad (Miller), I'm still trying to climb up the ladder, still trying to be that player I want to be," Martin said. "Last year was kind of like a breakthrough. And me and my trainer have been talking. This (season) needs to be more of a breakout."
About the writer: The Bee's Sam Amick can be reached at samick@sacbee.com.
