With most other players in the league, it’s news when they are injured. With Kenyon Martin, it’s news when he’s NOT injured.
On Monday, an MRI was performed on Kenyon Martin. It revealed that he has a bone bruise on his right tibia. The former first overall pick is listed as doubtful for the Denver Nuggets’ game against the Indiana Pacers on Tuesday night. He’s listed as “day to day” afterwards, which basically means that no one is certain when he’ll return.
Fans of the Denver Nuggets already joke that Kenyon Martin is always on “day to day” status.
Ever since the Denver Nuggets traded three first round draft picks to the New Jersey Nets to acquire him, fans have been accustomed to seeing Kenyon Martin on the injured list. He’s had microfracture surgery on both knees in the past few years. Even when he was healthy, he managed to underachieve by constantly causing chemistry issues with the team.
Now would have been a good time for Kenyon Martin to step up and produce for the team. He’s started all 13 games that he’s played in this year, but he’s only been able to stay on the floor for approximately 22 minutes a night. He’s also only producing 9 points and 5 rebounds a game. With him being paid more than $13 million this year, that’s not going to cut it. The team needs more than that since Nene Hilario has only been able to play 5 games this year.
The Utah Jazz has a slight lead over the Denver Nuggets right now in the standings. Had Kenyon Martin been able to produce, there’s a chance the Denver Nuggets would be sitting atop the Northwest Division.
Granted, players don’t have much control over injuries. It might even sound a bit harsh to criticize Kenyon Martin at the moment. However, he’s hasn’t necessarily proven himself to be a team player throughout the years, so it’s understandable to pounce on him.
