Charlotte Hornets: The Suite Life of “Caleb and Cody” Martin

Charlotte Hornets Caleb and Cody Martin. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images)
Charlotte Hornets Caleb and Cody Martin. (Photo by Streeter Lecka/Getty Images) /
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The Charlotte Hornets might have some underrated young players sneaking up on the horizon in twin brothers Caleb and Cody Martin.

Let me describe a Charlotte Hornets player for you. This player plays every possession with 110% energy and effort, he dives after loose balls, he is a defensive pest, defends at a very high level, and lastly… his offense needs some work, but he is a solid passer.

If you thought of Marcus Smart, me too. If you thought of lesser-known Cody Martin, me too. There is a reason for that; both answers are right. Cody Martin is Marcus Smart.

These guys play the same style and impact the game in the exact same ways. Obviously, Marcus Smart is a better, more polished version of the described player but my point remains the same.

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Cody Martin needs a locked-in spot in the Charlotte Hornets’ rotation every night. He makes such a huge difference that it is unbelievable.

You will not usually find his impact made while looking at his box score, but the eye test tells you everything you need to know. Cody is a special player who doesn’t need the ball to impact the game, and those guys are extremely difficult to find.

Cody makes the right play. I can not think of one time that he forced a shot or a pass that he should not have. I am not saying that he is a perfect player who never makes bad plays, however, I am saying that he is very fundamentally sound.

This roster is full of high-risk high-reward players. That is not always a bad thing but it is not always a good thing either. This team could use a solid, consistent player that they can rely on to make good decisions.

And that is my pitch for Head Coach James Borrego to allow Cody Martin to play every night.

Hey, and remember… Cody has a brother. Do you Remember Caleb Martin? It’s fine if you don’t, I don’t blame you, he hasn’t received much attention. He should. He has been playing for the Charlotte Hornets’ G-League affiliate, the Greensboro Swarm.

He has been averaging about 20 points, 6 rebounds, and 4 assists, a block, and over a steal per game on 46% field goal percentage. He has been stuffing the stat sheet and playing well.

He is also averaging almost 3 turnovers per game, but he is growing. He is someone to pay attention to for next season potentially. He was considered better than his brother, Cody, coming into the draft. He is undoubtedly more polished offensively.

We have seen the G-League help Dwayne Bacon and especially Devonte’ Graham tremendously. Fingers crossed, but Caleb Martin could be next in line for the ‘players who have greatly benefited from playing in Greensboro’ list.

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If both of these guys continue to develop then we might just have a set of twins as fun to watch as Zack and Cody Martin.