should martin come off the bench

[Kingsroots]

Kevin Martin = Empty Stats.

We are better off without him.

^^ Agree

I have always been a fan of Kevin I think mostly because he was homegrown and he came out of nowhere and became who he is now. His defense has always been poor though, and that has not changed this year. I counted at least 5 times in the first three games he played in this year that he went for steals without getting them which allowed the other team to score easy. And that is exactly what many ex-players and analysts have said KILLS defenses and irks other players. Kevin will never be a defensive force, never ever. He is overflowing with offensive instincts but lacking any defensive instincts. It just isn't in him.

Like I said I like Kevin as a player, but don't think he is going to fit well with this team going forward. Personally I think he would fit perfect with a team that has a TRUE point guard like CP3, Deron, Rondo, etc. Tyreke may eventually be a great distributor and a Wade type player but never a pure point. A year from now both of them will need the ball in there hands an awful lot which may slow down the offense too much.

So to answer the question, I think they should ease him back into the lineup. I thought we already learned this lesson? Anyway, jmo.

 

[PoundForPound]

^^ Agree

I have always been a fan of Kevin I think mostly because he was homegrown and he came out of nowhere and became who he is now. His defense has always been poor though, and that has not changed this year. I counted at least 5 times in the first three games he played in this year that he went for steals without getting them which allowed the other team to score easy. And that is exactly what many ex-players and analysts have said KILLS defenses and irks other players. Kevin will never be a defensive force, never ever. He is overflowing with offensive instincts but lacking any defensive instincts. It just isn't in him.

Like I said I like Kevin as a player, but don't think he is going to fit well with this team going forward. Personally I think he would fit perfect with a team that has a TRUE point guard like CP3, Deron, Rondo, etc. Tyreke may eventually be a great distributor and a Wade type player but never a pure point. A year from now both of them will need the ball in there hands an awful lot which may slow down the offense too much.

So to answer the question, I think they should ease him back into the lineup. I thought we already learned this lesson? Anyway, jmo.

thank you. i thought i was the only one who noticed. that annoyed the crap out of me.

 

[SkinnerBox]

Wow, the masses sure are fickle. We're throwing our best player under the bus that easily?

None of us know how well he'll fit in when he gets back. He played five games with this team, three of them away and with a new coach. Put away the torches and pitchforks.

 

[Chrono]

Volume shooters have never been my preference. If we can trade him for something usefull, even if it is a expiring contract that would allow us to sign a FA this summer i am all for it.

Teams work better once the volume shooter is reduced or vanished in their role. See. Nuggets without Iverson. Rockets without Tmac. Kings without Kmart. It's just against the way basketball should be played. You cannot go against nature.

If he cannot be traded, let him come off the bench and lead the second unit.

If we can somehow trade him for a player like Ginobili who can come of the bench, be effective both as shooter, distributor or finisher, that would be great. He can play with either evans or uldrih with great sync.

 

[Prince_XY]

Out of respect, Martin should be reinstated right away into the starting line-up when he comes back. As soon as he starts resisting giving his best effort in defense and messes out the good chemistry of the team, have him come off the bench. We got to show him he is dispensable. Maybe that would lit up a fire under his butt and make him play defense. It has been working pretty well on Beno, maybe it will also work on Martin, or even on Hawes.

 

[jaysoonii]

Martin is our leading scorer. Just because all of a sudden we win 4 straight with him out of the lineup doesn't mean we're better with out him.

Other guys are stepping up now and getting opportunity. To win a game, you need people who can shoot the ball. We're winning now because we've played 4 non-playoff caliber teams and we're out-rebounding teams. When you play againts championship teams, defense is a main factor, but you also need people who can shoot and spread the floor and thats what Kmart brings.

 

[venom_7]

The team's recent success as it stands had more to do with actual coaching and team chemistry improvements and it has less to do with Kevin being out of the lineup.

He does not need to be traded. You start (in most cases) your best players with the best cohesion. I, for one, am drooling over an Evans-Martin backcourt. Unguardable. Filthy.

Those of you who haven't been around here for a long time will realize the ship doesn't leave the port until about 30 games or so as far as public opinion goes. Three good home wins w/o Kevin does not dictate that he should be traded. It did, however, allow the Kings to figure out that other people can score. Kevin is very adaptable. He showed this when playing with Bibby and Artest. He can slide into any lineup IMHO and contribute.

His defense has also gotten a lot better this year as far as what I could tell from the games he has played in. I distinctly remember one possession in the ATL game when he blocked a JJ jumpshot in the closing minutes.

He is a weapon. Right now we have some knives and pistols, and we have been getting kills just fine. But that doesn't mean you put away your rifle.

 

[Geoff]

It's not just about scoring and which player is better than which player; it's also about which player best complements another player, who works well together, etc. etc. I don't think Kevin should be traded or brought off the bench automatically, but if it turns out that Kevin in the mix isn't bringing the results like before, then things should change.

The team is what is important.

 

[jon e]

martin is a black hole on offense. a good black hole unlike salmons but everytime hes in, theres more standing around waiting to see what kevin will do. it doesnt really help everybody else get into their rhythm when the game constantly stops for him to go to the line. i think were much more effective in the offense that were playing right now. id like his skills to come off the bench like manu does in san antonio or else trade him for a center

 

[kupman]

Wow, the masses sure are fickle. We're throwing our best player under the bus that easily?

None of us know how well he'll fit in when he gets back. He played five games with this team, three of them away and with a new coach. Put away the torches and pitchforks.

That's just it, I am not sure that he is our best player. everyone jumps to that conclusion because he scores the most points individually, but his liabilities in other areas keep from being our best player. I really think that "reke may be our best player already in his young career because his game is so strong in so many areas. after that, maybe it's JT?

I don't know. I just question the premise that KHurt is our best player. Even if he is our best scorer, there is no reason that he could not be a very valuable piece of this team coming off the bench in the mold of John Havlicek.

 

[6th]

I will repeat my opinion that you don't bring your top scorer off the bench. Many here are assuming that Kevin will ruin the offense, so I just want to make some observations.

Kevin is a very adaptable player. He used to get most of his points from either the 3 pt line or from his quick cuts to the basket. He did not used to have the ball in his hands for that much of the shot clock. Maybe one of the reasons that he has the ball so much is because he has been forced to create his own shots. We've had very little other offense.

Now we have some different offensive schemes since Kevin went out with injury. Does that mean Kevin is to blame for our losses? Not necessarily. What it does mean is that the coaching staff has had to recreate our offensive sets and that the players have adapted well to the change. It also means that our young guys have stepped up their production (by necessity) since our leading scorer went down.

Now, can Kevin adapt to the changes like the other players have had to adapt? Why don't we just give him a chance and see where it leads us.

 

[pdxKingsFan]

Regardless of how great Kevin is, I still believe that when a player comes back from an extended layoff, especially one due to injury, that player is not going to be 100% that first game, so what is the harm in slowly working him into the starting lineup, especially if we are playing well? On the other hand if you just cram him into the starting lineup it can have a crushing effect on chemistry especially if there is a performance drop.

 

[VF21]

My thought is why don't we let Paul Westphal make the decision? You know, the guy who has made this group of young men into a team and has us all cheering our lungs out? The guy who's actually paid to make these kinds of decisions?

I did like what Westphal said last night after the game. He pretty much refuted this whole "Martin hurts the team" silliness with a "We'll be much better once we get Kevin back."

 

[pdxKingsFan]

I'll be fine with whatever Westphal decides because presumably it will be a basketball decision rather than an emotional one.

 

[VF21]

I'll be fine with whatever Westphal decides because presumably it will be a basketball decision rather than an emotional one.

Yep. And the best part is it will be made by a basketball COACH as opposed to whatever it was we've seen since Adelman left.

 

[SacTownGrantFan]

We were dead last in the league last year and yet Martin is a great player...

 

[Jaylee209]

The Miami Heat were dead last a few years ago, and obviously Dwayne Wade is a great player.

You need more than one great player to make a team better...

 

[SacTownGrantFan]

The Miami Heat were dead last a few years ago, and obviously Dwayne Wade is a great player.

You need more than one great player to make a team better...

Right, but do not compare Dwayne Wade to Kevin Martin. Dwayne Wade is a great all around player - Martin is not. Martin is 1 dimensional, and commonly gets 'steamrolled' on defense. There is no comparison.

(edit) But your point is right that 1 great player can be on a last-in-the-league team. Where you're wrong is that Martin is not great, he is not a Dwayne Wade by any stretch of the rational imagination.