RE: Martin

[Lusby, Jeff]

Just out of curiosity, exactly how many of the number 1 picks would not
be considered a bust based upon Jared's criteria.....
 
"They all agreed that he was a bust as a first overall. I mean you would
expect the first overall to have made more than one all-star team, been
the MVP of his own team once and to win a championship."
 
Not being a big NBA follower, if I look back at the first round picks
from 1980 until 2004, that would mean that only Tim Duncan, David
Robinson, Akeem Olajuwan and James Worthy were the only 1st picks to not
be bust.  Of the rest, it looks like Kmart, Allen Iverson, Shaq and
Patrick Ewing would be the only other first round picks that at least
made it to the finals.  Guess this means that if you win the lottery and
get the first pick, you would be better off trading the pick because the
chances of not having a "bust" are not very good.  It is possible that I
missed a few people that have played in the final, but I didn't realize
that - as I said I haven't really followed the NBA all that close unless
there were some Bearcats to watch.
 
Note that I left out Shaq because the team that drafted him did not win
a championship either.  He need Phil and Kobe to get his title.
 
I have no illusions that Kmart is the greatest player in the NBA.  He is
however a very solid player and certainly one of the best defensive
players in the league.  He has now turned around 2 teams and from I
watched the NBA finals, the announcers were not talking about any other
Net (other than Kidd)  players except Martin.  
 
Not sure how you can consider him (or hardly any of the first picks) a
bust.  There is so few players selected each year that for the most
part, most of the high first round picks do become productive players.
(Not like the NFL where first rounders are busts all the time)  However,
look at the position he plays and list all of the players at that
position that are better.  He is not in position (nor the type of
player) that is going to be in the spotlight like Shaq, Duncan, Lebron,
etc... He does not play at 1, 2 or 5 which is where most of the
highlights and therefore the players that kids seem to want to emulate.
If I was starting a team, he would certainly be on the list of players
to consider, because defense wins championships - always has and always
will.
 
Now as for his senior year in college, that is a whole other topic which
is separate from his NBA career.  He is playing in a different style of
game and asked to do different things.  Not better, not worse, but
different.
 
Jeff

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From: Jared Garth [mailto:address@hidden 
Sent: Wednesday, October 05, 2005 8:16 AM
To: address@hidden
Subject: Re: [UC Basketball] Martin



The homers sure hate to see the reality of their sacred cows. I would
have liked to see kmart healthy in his senior year. Did he and Huggins
have the heart to win it all? We will never know, but in some ways it
was better that he got hurt because what would a early exit do to the
program with a healthy team consisting of 2 top fives and a future
all-american ( Logan). I would have loved seeing a UCONN, MSU, Florida
matchup.

 

I liked Huggins, but he is gone folks. UC is still here. let's rally
around the team, and for those who only followed the coach-- Well get a
ladder, take down a jersey and go deliver it to Denver  -- cause he is
refusing to come back here to play a game.


Mike, I said Kmart was decent. he is a solid second fiddle on his teams.
What I also said that #1 overall picks have lofty expectations. Kmart
never fulfilled those in jersey and had the door opened for him. Maybe
they didn't like his temper. Maybe jefferson delivered more on his
expectations. Anyways, I wish kenyon good luck in Denver. He and Nick
were always my favorite NBA players. It will be hard to just consider
him neutral.


	
  _____  

	From: address@hidden
	Reply-To: address@hidden
	To: address@hidden
	Subject: Re: [UC Basketball] Martin
	Date: Tue, 4 Oct 2005 17:10:44 EDT
	
	
	
	His jersey issue aside, Kenyon is a solid nba power forward.
Comparing him to Fortson is silly. Danny can not make the starting
lineup on any team he has played for. That's not a slam on Danny its
just a fact. Kenyon might not be a hall of fame pro or a super star that
the league bases it advertising on but teams thought enough of him to
pay him the top level salary. He consistently ranks in the top 10 in his
position. He was the second best player on a team that went to the
finals twice. He might not be the second coming of Michael Jordan but
few are. Based on the economics of the nba he was a steal for the Nets.