Pre-preseason in Florida with Kevin Martin

[KF10]

Kevin Martin walked out of a muggy gym at the IMG Academies in Central Florida this afternoon, having swapped his sweat-drenched t-shirt for a crisp and dry replacement.

Another session with his personal coach, David Thorpe, had come to an end, and Martin's saturated state said everything about the work that had been done. The Kings shooting guard has been teaming with Thorpe for offseason workouts for seven years now, beginning when Martin was entering his sophomore season at Western Carolina. After years of hearing about the pivotal role these weeks of workouts played, I decided to see for myself this week.

Because I will have an in-depth story and loads of multimedia material from the trip as the season nears, I won't be spoiling too much of the experience just yet. I will, however, share this: Martin looks ready for the regular season.

Physically, his once-fragile frame took yet another offseason step toward sturdy. His game that already taken historical steps in terms of statistical progress should be refined, with an emphasis this summer on everything from strengthening his weak hand on the dribble to playing lower to the floor rather than his penchant for staying upright to improving defensive positioning and awareness to finishing with exclamation point dunks more than ever.

Kings assistant Jason Hamm paid a visit to this hoops classroom as well and - like myself - was impressed with the detail, intensity and game-relevance of the workouts. While Martin sometimes works out with the likes of fellow Thorpe clients Tyrus Thomas and Luol Deng of Chicago, the better-known talent this week was NBA D-Leaguer Elton Brown and former NBA player Daniel Santiago (who has been making millions in Europe and is a free agent but has no business not being on an NBA roster with his big-man skills).

While media types (myself included) and fans alike are wondering how Martin will handle the role of being 'The Man' now that Ron Artest is gone, he is taking a somewhat more savvy approach. Between his strong stance in Las Vegas and his shared opinions this week, it's obvious he is welcoming the new personal challenge while expecting more from those around him at the same time.

He made a comparison to the season when Bonzi Wells' injury opened the door of opportunity for him and the huge chance so many of his teammates now have. There is a deaf ear turned to the many prognosticators (myself included) who expect the Kings' playoff-less streak to extend to three seasons and a competitiveness that wants nothing more than to play in late April again. There is the hope that his teammates are in shape come October training camp because a head start can only help.

There was far more working than there was talking this week for Martin, who gave every indication that this will be yet another breakout year

http://www.sacbee.com/static/weblogs/sports/kings/

[KF10]

You just have to love Martin's work ethic. One of the best in the NBA.

[Cruel_Ruin]

It's good to hear that Martin knows what his weaknesses are and is working hard to improve them. By all indications he's ready to take the next step in his development.

Just wanted to point out an interesting note from Sam Amick from the comments section.

Re: BornN1987 - Admittedly, I'm not in touch with each and every one of them but I've heard a few things. For starters, the group that's been doing their work in Sacramento probably hasn't been as large as coach Reggie Theus would like. Martin has been there for much of the summer, as have veterans Brad Miller, Bobby Jackson (who I hear has been in there almost every day), Shareef Abdur-Rahim and Mikki Moore. Francisco Garcia was playing with his Dominican Republic national team recently, Jason Thompson was at rookie camp in New York (not sure about his workout regimen), Spencer Hawes has been up in Seattle working out (while continuing to take college courses) and I haven't spoken with Quincy Douby recently. But here's the thing: From what I hear, teams like Boston and Cleveland have all 15 of their guys in the team's facility already. There's something to be said for that kind of a headstart on cohesion and chemistry. - Sam Amick

http://www.sacbee.com/dyn/comments/stan ... n%20Martin

Interesting indeed. I'm guessing Donte Greene is also at the Rookie camp. But where's Beno? Salmons? I hope they're not taking the offseason lightly.

[KF10]

Yeah, that's interesting. Hopefully, they are working hard like the others. But yeah, overall, the team seems motivated for the next season. Which is great.

[Joseph17]

I can't wait to see him dominate the entire league this year.

[Ballings7]

Very intriguing stuff to read, for sure

I definitely think he's going to up his general game, like at least 1/2 a notch, if not a full level.

Also makes me more excited for the season

[KF10]

It's really incredible how Martin is showing constant improvements year after year. And this year, he can improve even more. As the article implies, Martin's weaknesses has improved. Martin's overall defensive stance will be better and his ballhandling on his weak hand is strengthen.

I have a feeling that Martin will make his presence known around the league EVEN more.

[Inc]

I'm just hoping to see some more exciting and powerful dunks just so I can jump up and yell OH ****!

[Joseph17]

Does anyone know if Kevin Martin is working on shooting the long range jump shot off the dribble? Most superstar sgs and sfs shoot the three off the dribble and make it consistently. I rarely see Martin take those shots. That is his biggest weakness imo. Watch this from 1:30-2:30 if you want to see how valuable that part of the game could be.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1Px-jPm ... re=related

[pillwenney]

Does anyone know if Kevin Martin is working on shooting the long range jump shot off the dribble? Most superstar sgs and sfs shoot the three off the dribble and make it consistently. I rarely see Martin take those shots. That is his biggest weakness imo. Watch this from 1:30-2:30 if you want to see how valuable that part of the game could be.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1Px-jPm ... re=related

No they don't. Nobody in NBA history has made off-the-dribble 3's consistently. Guys like Lebron, T-Mac and Kobe can get hot with that shot, but that's it.

Kevin's weaknesses go as follow IMO:

1) Main Guy-ness--by this I mean a bunch of things tying into being a true star. Kev still has yet to show that he can really take over a game, and become such a weapon that the defense has to make him pass on a given play--and when they do that, he has to prove he can make the right pass at the right time. I think a lot of this is mental with him. And I think it's important to note that when something is mental, that doesn't mean that he can just overcome it easily. In fact IMO that makes the task more daunting.

2) Defense - Really just awareness will help him. He'll always struggle with especially large SG's, but he'll generally be okay here if he just ups his focus and awareness defensively.

[Cruel_Ruin]

Hey guys, RealGM's Tyler Sherkin has been at IMG Athletics in Florida with David Thorpe. I asked him if he could give us some of the material Kevin's been working on, and this was his response:

David Thorpe is the best thing that happened to Martin, FWIW, though Kevin is definitely a guy with an excellent work ethic and foundation. Since it wasn't the focus of the interview, I don't have any notes, just memories of his off-hand comments and comparisons (he was using Martin and Deng as examples of how players can develop in different ways, how they learn, etc, because I was asking him about scouting and development and such).

I definitely remember stuff about strength and conditioning, stuff to help him get more durable, stay healthier while taking all that contact. I think something to the tune of 10 pounds of muscle added. I recall heavy emphasis on ball-handling and playmaking; not point-forward stuff, but taking that aspect of his game to the next level. He's working on his defense, too. He had a specific goal in mind for an increase in his production in the paint, I remember that coming up (there's an article that says the same thing, too); I think he was talking about getting into the paint more often. I know that he wanted to work on his straightaway 3pt shooting.

Definitely continuing to work on his strengths: making the right play, shooting, cutting, making the right pass, using his quickness, etc.

I want to say I vaguely recall something about using the post a little bit, but that might have been more Luol Deng, who I know to have been working on his post game for the entire past season.

I understand Sam Amick is going to be doing a seriously in-depth story about this as the season gets closer, so I'd keep an eye on Kings Blog at sacbee.com. There's a decent article that he's already written here, if you're getting impatient and want a preview.

Anyway, the general gist is much as has been the case for a while now: working on developing his body, getting better on defense, maintaining and improving his strengths, working on specific weaknesses one at a time...

viewtopic.php?f=64&t=838938&p=17328869#p17328869

[Joseph17]

Does anyone know if Kevin Martin is working on shooting the long range jump shot off the dribble? Most superstar sgs and sfs shoot the three off the dribble and make it consistently. I rarely see Martin take those shots. That is his biggest weakness imo. Watch this from 1:30-2:30 if you want to see how valuable that part of the game could be.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=d1Px-jPm ... re=related

No they don't. Nobody in NBA history has made off-the-dribble 3's consistently. Guys like Lebron, T-Mac and Kobe can get hot with that shot, but that's it.

Kevin's weaknesses go as follow IMO:

1) Main Guy-ness--by this I mean a bunch of things tying into being a true star. Kev still has yet to show that he can really take over a game, and become such a weapon that the defense has to make him pass on a given play--and when they do that, he has to prove he can make the right pass at the right time. I think a lot of this is mental with him. And I think it's important to note that when something is mental, that doesn't mean that he can just overcome it easily. In fact IMO that makes the task more daunting.

2) Defense - Really just awareness will help him. He'll always struggle with especially large SG's, but he'll generally be okay here if he just ups his focus and awareness defensively.

Those are the superstars I'm talking about. My definition of superstar is a lot different than my definition of star. The superstars in the league are Lebron, Kobe, KG, Duncan, Paul, Wade (healthy) and T-Mac (healthy). I'm saying that Martin has to be able to get hot with that shot if he wants to get to be one of the best in the game. Your first point in your post is exactly what I'm talking about. In order to take over the game he can't be afraid to take those difficult shots and hit them when he's facing double teams. Martin never forces the issue and always lets the game come to him. In most situations that's good, but right now he's the best player on his team and he has to be selfish at times.

[pillwenney]

Those are the superstars I'm talking about. My definition of superstar is a lot different than my definition of star. The superstars in the league are Lebron, Kobe, KG, Duncan, Paul, Wade (healthy) and T-Mac (healthy). I'm saying that Martin has to be able to get hot with that shot if he wants to get to be one of the best in the game. Your first point in your post is exactly what I'm talking about. In order to take over the game he can't be afraid to take those difficult shots and hit them when he's facing double teams. Martin never forces the issue and always lets the game come to him. In most situations that's good, but right now he's the best player on his team and he has to be selfish at times.

But my main point is that nobody in the league can consistently make pull-up 3's--at least not in game type situations. Nobody ever even stays above 50% from 3--and those guys are almost always typically more stand still shooters.

[pillwenney]

Hey guys, RealGM's Tyler Sherkin has been at IMG Athletics in Florida with David Thorpe. I asked him if he could give us some of the material Kevin's been working on, and this was his response:

David Thorpe is the best thing that happened to Martin, FWIW, though Kevin is definitely a guy with an excellent work ethic and foundation. Since it wasn't the focus of the interview, I don't have any notes, just memories of his off-hand comments and comparisons (he was using Martin and Deng as examples of how players can develop in different ways, how they learn, etc, because I was asking him about scouting and development and such).

I definitely remember stuff about strength and conditioning, stuff to help him get more durable, stay healthier while taking all that contact. I think something to the tune of 10 pounds of muscle added. I recall heavy emphasis on ball-handling and playmaking; not point-forward stuff, but taking that aspect of his game to the next level. He's working on his defense, too. He had a specific goal in mind for an increase in his production in the paint, I remember that coming up (there's an article that says the same thing, too); I think he was talking about getting into the paint more often. I know that he wanted to work on his straightaway 3pt shooting.

Definitely continuing to work on his strengths: making the right play, shooting, cutting, making the right pass, using his quickness, etc.

I want to say I vaguely recall something about using the post a little bit, but that might have been more Luol Deng, who I know to have been working on his post game for the entire past season.

I understand Sam Amick is going to be doing a seriously in-depth story about this as the season gets closer, so I'd keep an eye on Kings Blog at sacbee.com. There's a decent article that he's already written here, if you're getting impatient and want a preview.

Anyway, the general gist is much as has been the case for a while now: working on developing his body, getting better on defense, maintaining and improving his strengths, working on specific weaknesses one at a time...

viewtopic.php?f=64&t=838938&p=17328869#p17328869

That sounds pretty much perfect. I can't wait to see how much he's improved!

The only thing is that I feel like he does a fine job of getting into the paint--or at least he would if not for the fact that he usually draws a foul before he can reach the paint.