John Salmons preseason assists: 31.6min 2.7ast
Kevin Martin preseason assists: 28.0min 1.3ast
While I have no doubt of the veracity of the stats listed, I certainly question their relevance.
Kevin Martin is a shooter; he's a go-to guy, he's supposed to be on the receiving end of assists to get the points...and he does it quite nicely.
John Salmons, on the other hand, is not the go-to guy. He should take a shot when it's there for him, of course, BUT he is supposed to be looking to see if someone like Kevin is open, and he hasn't done that as often as I would like...especially when Salmons is the first touch on the switch from defense back to offense.
I am happy with his progress in this regard and have noticed he isn't going iso anywhere near as much as before, but to compare his assists with Martin's just doesn't seem to prove anything of any real value to the discussion.
Is Salmons a black hole? Nope. Is one of his weaknesses a tendency to look for his own shot sometimes at the expense of an open teammate? Yep. Is it as bad as Artest? Good grief, no...
I think Salmons can be productive and valuable this season so I do not agree in any way with the OP. Having said that, though, I do not understand the need to rationalize his value by comparing him to Kevin Martin...