While general watchers of the NBA know the main players on the Miami Heat like stars Jimmy Butler, Bam Adebayo, and Tyler Herro, the team is deep with talent like standout Caleb Martin. In remembering the Heat's miraculous playoff run from last season, he was an offensive threat throughout that run and this season, especially the last few weeks, have been no different.
It was a tumultuous beginning for Martin as he dealt with ankle injuries that made him miss most of the preseason and the beginning of the regular season. He would then miss extended time after injuring his ankle again on Christmas Day against the Philadelphia 76ers.
But since then, Martin has been a staple coming off the bench and starting when other players on Miami have missed time due to injury. On multiple occasions, Heat head coach Erik Spoelstra has called Martin an “X factor” as he talked about Martin's recent run of exceptional performances according to Anthony Chiang of The Miami Herald.
“I think the biggest thing is he’s gotten healthy,” Spoelstra said. “He didn’t have his legs under him at the beginning of the year. So he was just kind of doing whatever he had to do just to get it up there and to be available for the team. That’s a great credit and salute to him. At the beginning of the year, he wasn’t anywhere near full health. Then how competitive he is, he’s just going to go all out with no brakes and he just has to kind of try to figure it out on the fly. But he has his legs under him now.”
Martin talks about his injuries
However, the bumps and bruises have not stopped for Martin as in last Tuesday's game against the Detroit Pistons, he had to receive six stitches to his face after accidentally being smacked by Butler and has also turned his ankle. Plus, he is dealing with a thumb injury sustained on Feb. 29 against the Denver Nuggets where he is expected to have surgery in the offseason as it is on his non-shooting hand per The Miami Herald.
“This injury is just not going to change,” Martin said. “It’s going to have to be taken care of at some point down the road. So at this point, it is what it is and I’m just going to play through it until it doesn’t allow me to. But I’ve already gone through it with the medical staff. They said that I can get it taken care of later, so that’s what I’m going to do. I’m going to just play through it and do what it’s going to allow me to do.”
Since the All-Star break, Martin has averaged 13 points, 5.3 rebounds, and 1.9 assists per game while shooting 48.4 percent from the field and 56.3 percent from three-point range. Once again, these impressive numbers are him coming off the bench as Martin said that it is a plus as “you just get a good look at the game before you get in.”
“Off the bench, you see how the game goes, kind of how things are being played out and seeing the openings,” Martin said. “Offensively, seeing what guys are trying to get to. On the defensive end, you just get a good look at the game before you get in.”
Martin talks about playing better when the “stakes are higher”
While the talent has always been there for Martin, why has this level of play come out now rather than consisyently throughout the season? Martin expresses that he feels like he plays his “best when the stakes are higher” as there is 20 games left in the regular season and the Heat are trying to solidify position in the Eastern Conference.
“I think with good players and good teams, every time you play high level competition and things intensify, you see what guys grow and what guys kind of shrink,” Martin, 28, said. “I always feel like I play my best when the stakes are higher, I just try to hone in and just amplify my game around this time of the year, for sure.”
“It’s just that time of the year,” Martin continued.
Martin's future still with the Heat?
Playing better also means that it could look better on your resume if Martin wants to earn more money after the season finishes. According to Chiang, Martin “can become an unrestricted free agent this summer with a $7.1 million player option in his contract for next season” as even he touched on talks about his future.
“It’s not going anywhere,” Martin said. “So the more you think about it, it’s not going anywhere. So, yeah, you know it’s there, but it don’t mean [expletive] if you’re not playing well anyways. If anything, that’s part of simplifying the mental aspect of it, just focusing on impacting winning games.
“At this point, people kind of know what you can and can’t do and what you bring to a team,” Martin continued. “Whether it’s play-making, shot-making, defense, whatever it is. So it’s not like my role is going to be able to grow exponentially inside a couple months. I think that helps me not worry about it as much.”
The Heat are 35-27 on the season which puts them sixth in the East after losing to the Dallas Mavericks Thursday night in the beginning of a brutal back-to-back. Miami continues that Friday as they will face the Oklahoma City Thunder before returning home Sunday to face the Washington Wizards.
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