Kevin Martin scouting report

[bballgm]

Strengths
Offense is his strength. Can score in a variety of unorthodox ways. Will make significant contributions as a finisher in transition, a one-on-one player, a spot up shooter, and a ball handler in pick and roll situations. Doesn't display a textbook shot in terms of fundamentals by any means, but is one of the most consistent and efficient shooters in the game, both on the catch and shoot or off the dribble. Can score from everywhere. Will knock down shots with contact, a hand in his face, and off balance. Has amazing touch and superb creativity improvising offensively. Terrific ball handler. Will get to the rim at a superb rate. Displays an extremely quick first step, and will run the floor hard in transition. A master at using shot-fakes to keep his defender off-balance. Uses his length and athleticism at the rim. Finishes at a high clip with contact despite his lanky frame. Goes to the line like a machine and shoots a great percentage.

Weaknesses
Below average defender. Lack of effort is clear at times. An average defensive player who has good awareness and makes smart plays, but lacks a significant amount of strength and isn't always as intense as you might hope. Possesses a below average wingspan, which hurts him being a great presence contesting shots on the perimeter. Has the quickness to keep most players out of the lane, but doesn't get in much of a defensive stance and seems to settle for swiping at the ball excessively. Gets overpowered by stronger players making their way to the rim. More concerned with leaking out in transition at times than he is at helping his team finish off a defensive stand.

Overall
Above average shooting guard, but appears to be regressing. He declined sharply in 2011-2012, most likely due to a combination of age, rule changes, and team chemistry. He would make a great complimentary player on a contending team, but as an unmotivated leader he will only guide a team to the lottery.

Source: http://www.bballgm.com/scouting-reports/view?reportid=1

[LarsV8]

Seems pretty spot on, except it doesn't give him credit for his playing the passing lanes well. Also can score from anywhere is a bit of a stretch. Doesn't mention he excels in a motion system and doesn't play well in a half court setting which should be noted. Decline was due to injury and system change, not really age.

[bballgm]

Seems pretty spot on, except it doesn't give him credit for his playing the passing lanes well. Also can score from anywhere is a bit of a stretch. Doesn't mention he excels in a motion system and doesn't play well in a half court setting which should be noted. Decline was due to injury and system change, not really age.

You're right. I actually thought he was older than 29 for some reason when I wrote that, so that part of the report should be updated. You have really good insight. You should definitely write some reports there and share them with us.

[Guy986]

Here is my scouting report for Shaq. You have my permission to post it on your website.

Strength is on offense. One of the most unstoppable big man in the history of basketball. Possess quick accurate hook shots from both hands around the rim. Amazing free throw shooter. Has range out to 20 feet. Quick limbs despite being fat. Runs extremely well for a man his size in transition. Can hit the open 3. Finish well in contact. Dunks everything inside. Also fat.

[bballgm]

Here is my scouting report for Shaq. You have my permission to post it on your website.

Strength is on offense. One of the most unstoppable big man in the history of basketball. Possess quick accurate hook shots from both hands around the rim. Amazing free throw shooter. Has range out to 20 feet. Quick limbs despite being fat. Runs extremely well for a man his size in transition. Can hit the open 3. Finish well in contact. Dunks everything inside. Also fat.

You're the guy nobody likes, am I right?

[Guy986]

Why must you be so crude. Im a fan of your scouting report. Really like the sound of this kevin martin guy, i hope the rockets trade for him. We havent had a 2 guard who could handle the ball, score in isolation, run the pick n roll, and shoot off dribble since tracy mcgrady went all broke back in 08.

[moofs]

In 2009 Shaq lost so much weight you could see his face.

[Guy986]

If you want a good Kevin Martin scouting report. Here it is. I didn't write this but it describe Martin's game down to the T.

I wasn't kidding in the riddle. Ever since the 2007 season, Kevin Martin has been among the greatest one-man offensive players in the NBA, at least in terms of efficiency. There are two extremely efficient things that a shooting guard can do on offense -- get to the line and shoot a three. Look at it this way -- the best offense in the league last year, the San Antonio Spurs, scored roughly 1.00 points per possession. Kevin Martin is an 85% free throw shooter. Every single time Kevin Martin goes to the line, his expected points for that possession are his FT% * Points Scored -- so, 0.85. His expected PPP of a possession where he goes to the line for two shots is 1.70. The same property of well-above-average production holds true of his three point shot, where Martin is a career 0.377 -- that leads to an expected PPP of 1.13. Those are two of Martin's biggest play types, by far, and both of them blow the combined efforts of one of the greatest offenses in the league out of the water. He knows what works.

It's no wonder, then, that Martin is so blasted efficient. Because all things considered, he does virtually nothing else. Martin is essentially a case study in the idea that an NBA player could be an offensive star simply by paring his game down to only a few specific, efficient play types. To wit, over Martin's career, he's scored 8728 points. Of those points, 2232 came from behind the three point line, and 2716 of them came from the free throw line. That means that in Martin's career, almost 60% of the points he's scored came from free throws or threes. There are many people who take a lot of free throws -- there are currently 29 active players that have made more than Martin in their careers -- but few are oh-so reliant on them. Few non-superstars, anyway. In any event, Martin has made a living paring his offense down to a few highly efficient shots and play-types. And he's done a good job of it, up until age began to bite at his efficiency last season.

So, given all these things, why is he so hard to watch? After all, I'm a statistician in my day job. I obsessively try to make every aspect of my life more efficient, and take great joy in it. But Kevin Martin's game simply rubs me the wrong way, you know? It's not a lack of effort -- you get this robotic sense watching Martin, that his anemic defense is calculated in its laziness, knowing he can exert some amount more energy on offense if he lays back on defense. He gives up his body to the game, playing all-out and risking injury constantly for the benefit of his free throw efficiency -- exactly what most people chastise stars for avoiding (although it's led to lots of injury issues, with Martin). He takes efficient shots and makes them. He's the type of player can score 30 on 15 shots, without really breaking a sweat.

But this game, this style... is simply so dull, so bare, so bereft of creativity. It's incredibly hard to watch on a regular basis. He's the essence of the stat-geek stereotype -- this player that advanced metrics say is (in theory) very good but a player whose eye-test absolutely says otherwise. If basketball is an art form, players like Tim Duncan are hardly the cold and calculating robots that publications like Free Darko make them out to be. It's Martin that really embodies it, always striving emotionlessly for that added tincture of efficiency. It's a quest, for Martin, and in its own lost and hollow way you wonder if his obsession with efficiency is just the thing that's always kept him from playing for a relevant team. For all of Martin's myriad positives, I can't escape the stinging pangs of the deepest recesses of my heart. Kevin Martin's game is simply boring. He's the little black spot on the sun today, the same old thing as yesterday -- the king of pain, tedium, and a logic so cruel and calculating it overrides the impressive efficiency with which he yokes his craft.

(... Until last season, where he simply sucked. But don't tell Houston that.)

http://gothicginobili.com/?p=3785#p3

Recap:

-over his career one of the most efficient player in the league

-Aesthetically ugly looking game. Boring playstyle.

-60% of his offense over his career came from 3s or free throw line. (I'm guessing the other 20% came from transition in the fast break? And the other 15% probably came from cutting to the basket for layups. The amount of offense he creates for himself in half court setting is virtually none)

-takes and makes good shots= good shot selection

-saves energy on defense for offense

-last season sucked monkey balls (author said it was age but its actually the rule change on FT. If 60% of your offense comes from 3 and FT and your FT is drastically reduced then..... you're screwed)