Good Kevin Martin Article

[KiwiMatt]

http://www.nba.com/timberwolves/news/breaking-down-kevin-martins-2012-13-shot-chart

I think most of us are undervaluing the Kevin Martin acquisition. This article does a good job of bringing out some of the many positives. We have gone from being the worst 3pt shooting NBA team to possibly challenging for a top 5 spot in 3pt percentage.

Martin and Budinger are perfect fits at the wing positions in Adelmans corner offense. Both are excellent corner 3 point shooters. The space this will create for Pek, Love in the post and Ricky on the perimeter will make this team ten folds better. Who does the opposition double team? They can no longer afford to leave are wing players open. Double Pek and you will get punished from the arc by Martin/Budinger. Double Love and you leave the Bulkan Bulldozer open down low.

[BizarroJerry [enjin:6592520]]

I think whoever is guarding Love this year is going to be miserable. Like Matty said, with a couple healthy legitimate outside scoring threats and Pek down low, Love will be free to roam wherever he wants to set up on the floor.

[bleedspeed]

I think Rubio will be happy with this supporting cast.

[mjs34]

I don't think anyone is unhappy with the offense Martin will give us. His draw backs are his D, age and injury history. If he can remain healthy, he will add a great deal to the team. I think people are way overvaluing what Bud will bring. He is a good 3pt shooter, and not much else. There is a reason Houston let him go for a mid first round pick.

[Q12543 [enjin:6621299]]

Budinger isn't a game-changer, but he won't hurt us either. He isn't bad at anything. He moves well without the ball, can hit the corner 3, makes smart passes, keeps his turnovers down, and is actually a pretty good rebounder too. From an advanced stats perspective, he's always been in that "average" territory. One of our downfalls over the years is having to plug our holes at the wing with well below-average talents, like Wes Johnson. Simply getting average wing play is a huge upgrade for this squad compared to past squads.

As for Kevin Martin, the key for him will be managing his minutes. Even though he will start with us, he should really be kept to no more than around 30 minutes per game based on his age and fragility. Shved is absolutely key to enabling us to weather any health storms with Kevin Martin.

[mjs34]

Bud is a horrible defender, which makes him a huge liability on that end. His turnovers should be down when you take into account he doesn't do any ball handling. He shoots and makes cuts on offense, that's pretty much it. While he is a decent bench guy to bring in, he was over paid by Flip. There were several other candidates that ended up signing for considerably less.

I think we overestimate value just because a guy has played for Adelman before.

[thedoper]

I don't think anyone is unhappy with the offense Martin will give us. His draw backs are his D, age and injury history. If he can remain healthy, he will add a great deal to the team. I think people are way overvaluing what Bud will bring. He is a good 3pt shooter, and not much else. There is a reason Houston let him go for a mid first round pick.

Exactly. And this seems to be what the analysts are saying about our team. We will have an improved offense but struggle on D. But I think overall it is hard to not be excited us being able to score.

[longstrangetrip [enjin:6600564]]

More good news about Martin in Henry Abbott's article on ESPN about Martin in the clutch. Last year he had an effective field goal percentage of 79.3 on shots taken in the 4th quarter or overtime with a scoring margin of three or fewer points...i.e clutch shooting. Some guys like shooting in the clutch and some guys don't (cough, cough Kevin Garnett), and based on last year Martin is a guy who thrives when the game is on the line. The article fairly points out that with the defense focused on Westbrook and Durant, many of these shots were wide open. But I think defenses will be looking to stop Love first at crunch time, so Martin should get a lot of open looks with us too.

More reason to look forward to the start of the season!

[bleedspeed]

LST - I just saw this. I hope Kevin Martin continues that trend. I know Rubio will give him plenty of open looks.