MJ had it, Kobe has it, Lebron is getting it and even a few times, T-Mac showed it. We all know about Martin by now. Very efficient scorer. What I'm getting at is, is Kevin Martin the type of player that puts his team on his back with a couple minutes left and wins them the game? There was that last play before regulation where Martin had the ball, but didn't attack and we ended up with a Batter three. It almost seemed like Martin didn't want the shot. Sure, he took that three at the end of OT but he had no choice. I'm not too sure if Kevin Martin is what you would call a "closer".
He is not a lead dog, he is a great complimentary piece. AB or Yao will need to be the lead dog, I put my money on AB. DD
Martin is on a new team and doesn't want to ruffle feathers. Wait till next year when players roles are more defined. I can tell you AB will not be the first option when Yao comes back. Give it time.
To soon, on a new team, to be able to answer that question HOWEVER I'll say NO...the dude is a shooter and scorer but is NOT in the league of the guys you mentioned, the good thing is he won't need to be when Morey finishes his masterpiece.
AB as Lead dog isn't be clutch in win time. The only player I trust on our team to make the last second shot is Lowry.
No Martin doesn't have the killer instinct necessary to be the main guy...or even the second guy in my opinion.
Fact of the matter is we are not complete and we just Wing it out there in Clutch time without Landry. AB is ok but will NEVER be a Leader/go to guy on a Championship Caliber team. Could He get an open 3 when Yao or our Mystery PF (Bosh) is here? Yes. Martin and AB are on the same boat. They need someone to get doubled in the post to create a great look and drop a game winner. Next year folks, Next year.
I have to agree. You can look at AB and see he has the no fear attitude. He isn't afraid to put up the last shot. I just think having to run the team and be the closer is a little overwhelming for the young guy. Give him another year or two with experience. He needs to make better decisions. Until then, Yao seems to be that guy for us.
This is Brooks' developmental year. After Yao comes back, Brooks won't have nearly as much freedom as he has now.
The sorry truth is that no one, not one person on this team has the ability to put up a game winning shot.
I was watching the game last night was baffled at how KM scored 27pts by the end of the night. He seemed a little passive. He didn't try to drive as much as the first few games since the trade. He also looked like he was limping slightly on occassion. Through the course of the game his points didn't stand out too much, and I may have lost sight (interest) of his free throws. But when I heard on the telecast that he scored his 25th points I turned to my wife and was like "How the hell did he score 25 pts!" Did you guys see him limp a bit too, or was my mind just playing tricks on me? Where any of you guys, that watched the game, as surprised as I was to see his stat line at the end of the game?
I think that Yao should work with Hakeem on the inside-out game as it seems to me that the rockets may have most of the pieces for that kind of game. I'm thinking of something similar to the 94-95 rockets team. I don't know if Martin is in the same league as Lenton, Jordan, or Kobe, and quite frankly, nobody ever claimed that he was. It's important to look at him as he is and not what you might want him to be... That being said, he's still a very good player and could be an integral piece of something really special in Houston. In my mind he is in a similar place that Mcgrady was in when he came to Houston: an unproven piece of gold. Whereas Mcgrady turned out to be fools gold the jury is still not out on Martin. I think Martin has a bit more distance to cover before he garners the respect that Mcgrady had here given that he lacks the accolades that the former rocket had. However, by not expecting anything of Martin we can allow ourselves to (hopefully) be pleasantly surprised. Martin is not going to play like Jordan or Kobe or lebron or like mcgrady could have played; Martin is going to be Kevin Martin.
Brooks has a killer instinct. Look at how many times he has missed a game winner for us. He continues to go in with it and attack in many different ways. Martin seems to lack that right now. He needs to put aside that new player feeling and take control a little more than he does now.
Comparing Martin to Jordan, Kobe or LeBron is like comparing Camby to Bill Russel or Dream or Chamberlain. Good to great players, yes, but don't expect them to suddenly morph into legendary because they got away from a crappy franchise. They are still the same guys and while they are getting more help, any success will have to come from the team working together and not just one man taking over.
