I spoke with Kansas State basketball coach Frank Martin for about 20 minutes earlier today. During that conversation we covered a number of topics, ranging from the similarities he sees between Dallas Mavericks guard J.J. Barea and Wildcats freshman Angel Rodriguez (read all about it in tomorrow’s paper), what he is expecting out of his newest recruits, the promotions on his coaching staff and plenty in between.
I’m planning on passing along all of those tidbits throughout the week right here. Allow me to kick things off now with a few notes.
Feeling Better
Martin is much healthier today than he was last month when he began undergoing treatment for blood clots found in his leg.
“I feel great,” Martin said. “I’m on blood thinners. There are times during the day that makes you feel weird, but I’m good. My doctors are comfortable with my blood and they’re comfortable with the clot. In the back of my mind, I’m always worried. Blood clots are nothing to mess with. So I’m not free and clear. I’m always going to have a concern in the back of my mind, but physically I’m good.”
Martin is having his blood checked every two weeks until mid August for precautionary reasons. He is hoping his blood clot dissolves by then.
Pullen Gaining Interest
Based on the number of calls he has received in the last week from NBA executives asking about Jacob Pullen, Martin thinks his former player has a good shot at being selected in the upcoming NBA Draft.
“Jacob has picked up some steam here of late,” Martin said. “He’s had some very, very good workouts. He was great at the combine in Minnesota. We’ve had teams over the last three weeks doing their due diligence. They’re asking the questions you ask when you’re really, really interested in a player.
“What’s that mean? I have no idea. They were doing the same thing with Denis (Clemente) last year and he didn’t get drafted. So I don’t know what that means or how it will work out. But there is enough interest that teams are doing their due diligence.”
Loyal to Evans
Why did Martin promote Lamont Evans to a full-time assistant coach last week? One word: Loyalty.
“That’s what it’s all about,” Martin said. “I think he’s great. Great personality, engaging, intelligent … I think he’s a great fit. I had some great conversations with some other people in the business that I have tremendous respect for, but at the end of the day I kept thinking back to when I had called all these other coaches about Lamont and recommended him for jobs. Obviously I had great confidence in him.”
Last week, Evans told me he planned to focus his recruiting efforts in Florida, Georgia and the Tobacco Road area. Martin views Evans’ recruiting contacts as a big plus. But he sees them stretching far behind just that region.
“Lamont knows a lot more people than people think,” Martin said. “But he does have a lot of connections in Florida, and that will be a big help to me, because it alleviates the daily grind of me having to recruit kids in Florida. He can go down there and then I can help him when he needs me, just like I help Matt (Figger) and Brad (Underwood) on the recruiting trail. It allows me to get more involved and recruit guys in different parts of the country.”
Going Overseas
In the past three years alone, Kansas State has allowed five of its players to participate in traveling basketball tours through Europe. First it was Dominique Sutton and Pullen, then it was Jamar Samuels and Nick Russell and most recently it was Will Spradling.
The sophomore guard played so well that he was named MVP of a tournament he helped his team win. Martin was thrilled about that result.
“As a coach, I respect the heck out of that,” Martin said. “Will went out there and represented himself, his family and Kansas State in a big-time way.”
Martin anticipates coaches continuing to show interest in K-State players for such basketball trips. Participation is encouraged.
“I think it’s a great opportunity,” Martin said. “Any player who turns that type of opportunity down doesn’t want to be good. In this case, (Baylor director of basketball operations Tim Maloney) asked for Will and Will immediately said, ‘Yes,’ which goes with his personality. I knew it was going to be a good deal. I was happy for both of them.”
