Charlotte Hornets: Cody Martin emerging as useful role player
By Luke Tucker
Following the return of PJ Washington, the Charlotte Hornets continued to play Cody Martin on Friday night.
When it was announced that PJ Washington would be out for a few weeks following a fractured pinkie finger, the Charlotte Hornets were forced to make some lineup adjustments. One of those adjustments meant giving rookie Cody Martin a dose of steady minutes. Martin played his way into the rotation early in the season, but since then his minutes had been sporadic. That is until Washington’s injury.
During the five games he was out, Martin averaged nearly 25 minutes per game. When Washington returned on Friday night against the Thunder, Martin maintained his playing time, logging 22 minutes, while also being on the floor with the starters in overtime. He isn’t a flashy player, and he’s not a guy who’s going to receive much attention, but his contributions shouldn’t go unnoticed.
Over the past six games, Martin is averaging 8.0 PPG and 5.2 RPG, however his impact goes beyond the stats.
Spanning the last six contests, Martin has averaged 8.0 points to go along with 5.2 rebounds per game. Based on those numbers alone, there’s not much to be really excited about. In other words, there’s much more than meets the eye with the rookie forward. During that time frame, Martin has shot 48% from the field, and has the second-most points off the Hornets’ bench. On top of that, he has a 10:3 assist to turnover ratio. Martin is shooting a solid 41% on the year, however, it’s his defense that makes him truly stand out.
Coming out of Nevada, Martin was already regarded as a solid defender. He was primarily a guard in college, so his experience defending opposing guards has aided him in his wing defense in the NBA. During the aforementioned last six games, the Hornets as a team have been outscored by 51 points. When Martin has been on the floor, Charlotte has been outscored by just a single point. In fact, when he’s on the floor, opponents are scoring almost 10 points less per 100 possessions than when he’s on the bench. It’s also worth noting that he has three times as many steals as he has turnovers during the current six-game span. Also, he ranks fourth in the NBA in charges drawn with 11—the same as Kemba Walker.
While Martin kept his minutes in Washington’s return, Nic Batum failed to see any action.
With Washington returning on Friday night, Martin’s retaining of his playing time meant someone had to lose theirs. That man was Nic Batum when Charlotte faced off with Oklahoma City. Batum had started the Hornets’ final two games during Washington’s absence, despite taking only eight shots in 51 minutes. He scored just 11 points during those two games, and turned the ball over more times than he assisted on made baskets. Batum has played in just 16 games all year, and is averaging a career-low 3.6 points per game. It’s clear he isn’t performing, and his lack of production could open the door for Martin long-term.
As Batum continues to drive fans crazy with his mega-contract and pitiful performance, Martin continues to get better and better. With that being said, it’s time James Borrego and co. starts giving Martin a look as a potential long-term piece. Most experts believed the Hornets reached to get Martin with the 36th pick in the 2019 NBA draft, however, he’s already outplayed his billing as a rookie second-round pick.
Obviously he’s good on the defensive end, but he shot over 50% at Nevada and improved his three-point percentage by more than six percent during his two years at the school. As he continues to get more comfortable against NBA defenses, he should offer plenty of upside on offense. Nonetheless, the current season is one of rebuild for the Hornets, so they have nothing to lose by continuing to give him regular minutes down the stretch. Who knows, in a year or two from now, he could become as big a draft steal as Devonte’ Graham has been.