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Cody Martin of the Charlotte Hornets and Caleb Martin, now of the Miami Heat, could be offseason targets for the Boston Celtics.
On Thursday night, the Boston Celtics just pulled off a massive Game 2 win over the Miami Heat. They are now just three wins away from a berth in the NBA Finals. Despite this, the front office still needs to be looking ahead to free agency to find ways to improve the roster.
As seen in Game 1 of the Eastern Conference Finals, injuries can be a killer. Marcus Smart and Al Horford were both out, and while Boston’s depth is better this year than in years past, there could still be some improvements to the bottom half of the roster.
According to an anonymous Eastern Conference GM, Cody Martin and Caleb Martin are potential targets for the Celtics this offseason. The GM, who spoke with Sean Deveney of Heavy.com, noted that they could be perfect fits in Boston’s system.
“Either one of the Martin twins, both are going to be on the market (Caleb for Miami, Cody for Charlotte),” the GM stated. “They can defend, and they can knock down shots, and neither one should be very expensive. Obviously, Cody has been seen as having higher upside, but you have to like what the Heat got from Caleb this year, especially shooting the ball.”
This season marked the first time they played for different teams, as they both attended the University of Nevada and spent the first two years of their careers together on the Charlotte Hornets. Coincidentally, both of them also had breakout seasons this year.
Martin Twins’ Stats This Season
Cody Martin remained with the Hornets this year, playing a career-high 26.3 minutes per game. He averaged 7.7 points, 4.0 rebounds, and 2.5 assists while shooting 48.2% from the field and 38.4% from deep. But he was particularly useful to the Hornets on the defensive side of the ball.
Charlotte’s roster had a severe lack of quality perimeter defenders this past year. Now-former head coach James Borrego often used Martin as the point-of-attack defender, tasked with guarding the opposing team’s best player. He averaged 1.2 steals a night in the process.
Meanwhile, Caleb Martin joined the Heat this past offseason on a two-way contract. However, he quickly became a crucial part of their bench rotation, and the Heat converted his deal to a standard contract ahead of the postseason, making him eligible to appear in playoff games.
He averaged 9.2 points, 3.8 rebounds, and 1.1 assists for Miami this year while shooting 50.7% from the field and 41.3% from three-point land in 22.9 minutes per game. The anonymous GM mentioned that Martin’s importance to Miami may make him more difficult to acquire than his brother.
Miami’s Willingness to Let Caleb Martin Walk
The GM stated that Miami will likely be looking to keep Caleb Martin around this offseason. Despite not contributing much in the playoffs, he’s been a crucial part of their lineup this year.
“If you’re the Celtics, it is an added bonus because you’re taking a player off one of your competitors. I think for Miami, though, they have to keep Caleb Martin,” said the GM. “He has not made a big statement in the playoffs but for depth purposes, they need him. Lot of old players on that roster and he is a guy who can fill in at a lot of spots.”
Martin has played just 10.8 minutes per game in the playoffs for Miami this season, averaging 3.1 points per game. He’s played in both games against the Celtics, scoring five and seven points, respectively.
For Boston, adding either of the Martin twins to the roster would add a young, two-way wing who could provide injury insurance. And according to the anonymous GM, both of them should be available on the market for a reasonable price.
