KU Jayhawks’ Remy Martin had standout game vs. North Texas. But this must come next
Bill Self jumped off the bench early in the second half, screaming at Remy Martin while pulling his right thumb back toward his chest.
The Kansas coach delivered this message to his playmaking guard in both English and sign language: You need to guard, or I’m going to take you out.
It was a telling sequence in KU’s 71-59 victory over North Texas on Thursday in the opening round of the ESPN Events Classic, as Self threatened Martin’s playing time ... yet never could quite pull the trigger to bring him to the bench.
There was good reason for that: Martin was fabulous offensively, serving as an ace distributor and tough-shot maker while infusing enthusiasm into a team that often plays stoically.
“Pretty good offensively, and he showed flashes of being good defensively,” Self said of Martin after the game. “And he showed flashes of not being that too.”
One example was the play that soon sent Self leaping out of his chair just after halftime.
Martin was playing a few feet off North Texas guard Tylor Perry defensively, swiveling his head left and right while worried about a ball screen that never came.
Instead, Perry took Martin on a drive straight to the rim, finishing with a layup for the type of easy basket that Self’s defenses don’t typically surrender.
To his credit, Martin — without being prompted — said his defense needed to improve while speaking in the postgame press conference. When asked which area in particular, he said simply staying solid in front of his man.
“I think I could be a pretty good defender, how quick I am laterally and stuff,” Martin said. “Sometimes when I get out of position off the ball — and sometimes on the ball — I gamble and stuff.”
These woes have the potential to be a big problem if not addressed. Unfortunately for KU, a team’s defense is only as good as its weakest link, and one only needed a brief look at the second half to see that North Texas’ coaches had watched film and determined that Martin was that guy for KU.
Too often, the Mean Green was successful offensively by simply using a ball screen to get one of its best playmakers switched onto Martin before having that man go one-on-one while trying to go past the KU point guard.
Self deadpanned a bit to start when asked what the team needed from Martin defensively moving forward.
“Maybe guard the ball better. Maybe his man not shoot a layup. Maybe play up underneath a guy,” Self said. “When a guy’s that little, and he’s that quick (like Martin), and he’s probably got three steals in four games or something like that ... I mean, that to me, he’s not creating havoc.
“A guy that small’s got to play and create havoc. And when he does, he’s good. But he doesn’t do that consistently.”
Self’s typically isn’t far off when citing numbers from the top of his head, but he was on this instance. Martin has no steals in his four KU games while logging 104 total minutes.
As mentioned, though, the intriguing part is what the Jayhawks’ ceiling might be if they continue to get this Martin offensively.
He played with charisma Thursday, zipping cross-court passes and also no-looking dimes off pick-and-rolls. He made open threes and tough ones, barking to the crowd after many of those while firing up his teammates.
Martin’s 15 points came on nine field-goal attempts. Add that to his four assists with a single turnover, and it’s an offensive line that is everything Self could’ve hoped for once he landed Martin’s commitment over the summer.
The next step will be necessary, though. It’s not enough for Martin to thrive on one end of the court as a dual scorer and distributor; that still nearly got him benched.
He also needs to take care of his part defensively, or all the hard work of his teammates to switch and hedge and recover won’t ever result in stops.
“I’ve got the ability to be a good defender, and coach’s pushing me to be that,” Martin said. “I appreciate him for doing that because at any next level, that’s exactly what I’m gonna have to do anyway. So I’m taking more pride in it.”
Martin says he’s getting better and more comfortable, especially with the specific way that Self wants his guys to defend. Martin expects to get better game by game while also vowing to consistently bring competitiveness.
That will be needed. College basketball has few secrets, and as KU becomes more connected as a team defensively, opponents will be more likely to try to pick on a single defender for points.
Martin is that guy for now. And it will be up to him over the next few games to show that North Texas’ strategy won’t be effective ahead.
