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Grand Kenyon Martin talks draft with CNNSI.com
Posted: Wednesday June 28, 2000 06:16 PM
It's been a long time coming for Kenyon Martin. The former center for the University of Cincinnati broke his leg during a game last March. The Bearcats lost Martin and a shot at a national title. Now Martin, who is expected to play power forward in the NBA could be the top pick in Wednesday's draft. CNNSI.com's Mark Fein talked with Martin who was in Minneapolis waiting for his name to be called. Marc Fein: Kenyon, how's the leg holding up? Kenyon Martin: It's fine. I'm doing just fine. Fein: A lot of the talk in this draft has been about your leg and the injury. In the past two weeks you've had a pin removed from the leg, I know you had some workouts. How does it feel? Martin: I haven't done too much. I did a little shooting and stuff. It wasn't too hard of a workout. So, I'm just taking it day by day and just moving on. Fein: Can you tell us a little bit about about what the doctors are telling you. Do they have any concerns about future injuries on the leg? Or if any other teams have expressed concerns about the leg? Martin: Doctors have told the teams that it is going to be fine and that they shouldn't have anything to worry about. Fein: A lot of people who know a lot about basketball say that you will be the No. 1 pick in the draft. How important is it to you to be No. 1? Or is it important? Martin: It is not important at all. As long as I get to play again, that's the only thing I care about. No matter if I'm one or two, as long as I play. Fein: New Jersey has the No. 1 pick, Vancouver is No. 2. There's been a lot of talk about Orlando making a deal to move up. Do you have any feelings about the different cities or teams? Martin: I'm not there for the city. I'm there to just play and no matter where I am, I'll have to do a job. And that's what I'm capable of doing. Fein: Gave you given any thought about being with a contender or being with a team that is rebuilding? And how that might impact the way you will play in the upcoming season? Martin: With my position, I'm going to go pretty high so, I'm going to be with a team with a losing record over the past few years. So that's just what I have to accept and try and help that team win. Fein: I know you had some workouts for some teams. Have they given you any idea about how they feel about your performance? Martin: They just wanted to see if I could move and all that stuff and I showed them that I could still move and all that, so they're pretty comfortable. Fein: One NBA executive has been quoted as saying, "Kenyon Martin will make an immediate impact, pay immediate dividends." What are your goals and what do you expect to achieve in your first year in the league? Martin: Just go out every day and play hard and just...and not hit that wall and let my year be shortened by injury and stuff like that. Just go out and just play hard. Fein: Are you nervous at all about the draft? Martin: No, not yet. It might hit me tomorrow (Wednesday). But I have a lot less to worry about than most guys. So, I'm just taking it in stride. I'm calm. Fein: Your life is about to change in a big way. Can you tell us what kind of advice you've been given about the transition of going from college to the pros? Martin: I just want to see how it is for myself. A lot of guys deal with it in different ways. And I'm a different person so I just want to see how I will deal with it. Fein: Have you talked with any current or former NBA players to see how they dealt with the transition? Martin: No, because different people deal with it in different ways. So I haven't talked with anyone. That's just the way I am. I like to do things on my own.
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