Kelan Martin (born August 3, 1995) is an American professional

basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...

player for

Pınar Karşıyaka Pınar is a common feminine Turkish given name. In Turkish, "Pınar" means "Spring" (of water), and/or "Fountain". Notable people called Pınar include: Given name * Pinar Heggernes (born 1969), Turkish-born Norwegian computer scientist * Pına ...

of the Basketbol Süper Ligi (BSL) and the

Basketball Champions League The Basketball Champions League (BCL) is an annual professional basketball competition for European clubs, organised by FIBA. It is the top-level competition organised by FIBA Europe, therefore the champion participates in the FIBA Intercontin ...

(BCL). He attended Ballard High School in

Louisville, Kentucky Louisville ( , , ) is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Kentucky and the 28th most-populous city in the United States. Louisville is the historical seat and, since 2003, the nominal seat of Jefferson County, on the Indiana border ...

, and played

college basketball In United States colleges, top-tier basketball is governed by collegiate athletic bodies including National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athleti ...

for the Butler Bulldogs, where he scored 2,047 points during his career, the second highest in the school's history. Martin was selected for the All-Big East second team on two occasions, the All-District 5 second team by the National Association of Basketball Coaches, and as a senior, he was named to the All- Big East first team.

Early life

Martin comes from a basketball family. His father, Kenneth, was on the state championship team at Louisville's Ballard High School and won an NCAA Division II championship at

Kentucky Wesleyan Kentucky Wesleyan College (KWC) is a private Methodist college in Owensboro, Kentucky. The college is known for its liberal arts programs. Fall 2018 enrollment was 830 students. History Kentucky Wesleyan College was founded in 1858 by the Kent ...

. His mother, the former Kristie Jordan, was honored with a retired jersey at Ballard and competed for an NCAA runner-up team at

Western Kentucky Western Kentucky is the western portion of the U.S. state of Kentucky. It generally includes part or all of several more widely recognized regions of the state. ;Always included * The Jackson Purchase, the state's westernmost generally recogniz ...

. They met at the age of eight growing up in housing projects in downtown Louisville and married after college. As of 2017 Kenneth works as assistant director of pupil personnel for Jefferson County Public Schools, while Kristie works in administration monitoring Louisville's police budget. Kelan has a younger brother, Kameron, and was raised with cousin Jalil Brown, the son of Kristie's deceased sister. Growing up, Kelan preferred American football to basketball. He competed for Louisville Legends summer teams in middle school, where he was nicknamed "Baby Shaq" by

Rajon Rondo Rajon Pierre Rondo (, born February 22, 1986) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Cleveland Cavaliers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). A point guard, Rondo played two years of college basketball for ...

. While at Ballard High School, he competed for the AAU team Indiana Elite, where future Louisville player Quentin Snider starred. Martin measured as a freshman at Ballard and started several games. He stopped playing football as a sophomore and worked on improving his running ability. As a junior, Martin guided Ballard to the Sweet 16 of the Kentucky basketball tournament, recording 23

point Point or points may refer to: Places * Point, Lewis, a peninsula in the Outer Hebrides, Scotland * Point, Texas, a city in Rains County, Texas, United States * Point, the NE tip and a ferry terminal of Lismore, Inner Hebrides, Scotland * Point ...

s and 14 rebounds in the Bruins' 59–55 victory over Montgomery County at Rupp Arena. In the championship, Martin scored 19 points and pulled down 12 rebounds, but Madison County beat Ballard 65–64. He averaged 19.1 points and 10.2 rebounds as a junior and was named to the Second Team All-State. Coach Chris Renner called Martin's senior year the best season of any player he coached at Ballard. The Bruins were ranked number one in Kentucky. Although outshone by Quentin Snider, Martin scored 16 points in an overtime loss to

Trey Lyles Trey Anthony Lyles (born November 5, 1995) is a Canadian professional basketball player for the Sacramento Kings of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He was drafted by the Utah Jazz following his freshman season at the University of Kent ...

-led Arsenal Tech. He had 28 points, including the deciding three-pointer, when Ballard beat

Myles Turner Myles Christian Turner (born March 24, 1996) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana Pacers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played one season for the Texas Longhorns men's basketball, Texas Longhorns befor ...

and Trinity High School (Euless, Texas) 72–70. In another game against Doss High School, Martin scored 36 points, and coach Renner started isolating him from practices since he overwhelmed team scrimmages. The season ended when the Bruins lost to Trinity High School (Louisville) in the regional championship 59–58. He scored 2,014 points in his career, third in school history. As a senior, Martin averaged 22.8 points and 8.7 rebounds per game, shooting 37 percent from three-point range. His first recruiting offer was from IUPUI, coached by his father's high school teammate

Todd Howard Todd Andrew Howard (born 1970) is an American video game designer, director, and producer. He serves as director and executive producer at Bethesda Game Studios, where he has led the development of the ''Fallout'' and ''The Elder Scrolls'' s ...

. Martin was first recruited to Butler by Brad Stevens, and his recruitment continued under Brandon Miller. He considered

Providence Providence often refers to: * Providentia, the divine personification of foresight in ancient Roman religion * Divine providence, divinely ordained events and outcomes in Christianity * Providence, Rhode Island, the capital of Rhode Island in the ...

, St. Louis,

West Virginia West Virginia is a state in the Appalachian, Mid-Atlantic and Southeastern regions of the United States.The Census Bureau and the Association of American Geographers classify West Virginia as part of the Southern United States while the Bur ...

and

Oklahoma Oklahoma (; Choctaw language, Choctaw: ; chr, ᎣᎧᎳᎰᎹ, ''Okalahoma'' ) is a U.S. state, state in the South Central United States, South Central region of the United States, bordered by Texas on the south and west, Kansas on the nor ...

but chose Butler because he liked the coaches and players. When Quentin Snider decommitted from

Illinois Illinois ( ) is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern United States. Its largest metropolitan areas include the Chicago metropolitan area, and the Metro East section, of Greater St. Louis. Other smaller metropolita ...

and selected Louisville, Martin's friends thought he should follow suit but he remained firm in his commitment to the Bulldogs. He was ranked 139th nationally by Rivals.com and was a finalist for

Kentucky Mr. Basketball The Kentucky Mr. Basketball honor recognizes the top high school senior basketball player in the state of Kentucky. The first Kentucky Mr. Basketball was "King" Kelly Coleman of Wayland High School in 1956. The winner of the Mr. Basketball award we ...

College career

Freshman season (2014–2015)

By the time Martin arrived on campus,

Chris Holtmann Christopher Adam Holtmann (born November 11, 1971) is an American college basketball coach who is currently the head coach at Ohio State University. Holtmann grew up in Nicholasville, Kentucky, and started his college playing career in-state a ...

was the coach. On November 22, 2014, Martin had a season-high 23 points to go along with seven rebounds in a win over Loyola (Maryland). The following game, Martin had 17 points in 17 minutes in a 74–66 upset over fifth-ranked

North Carolina North Carolina () is a state in the Southeastern region of the United States. The state is the 28th largest and 9th-most populous of the United States. It is bordered by Virginia to the north, the Atlantic Ocean to the east, Georgia and So ...

. He was named Big East Rookie of the Week on March 9, 2015, after scoring 14 points against

. Martin averaged 7.1 points and 2.1 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per game.

Sophomore season (2015–2016)

He scored 35 points and grabbed eight rebounds in an 87–76 win against Georgetown on February 26, 2016, the most by a Butler player since 1998. He was twice named the Big East Player of the Week on December 14 and February 8. Over the course of the season, he had eight double-doubles in both points and rebounds, and 10 games with 20 or more points. Martin averaged 15.7 points and 6.8 rebounds per game as a sophomore on a team led by

Kellen Dunham Kellen Dunham (born June 18, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for the Indiana All-Americans of The Basketball League (TBL). He played college basketball for the Butler Bulldogs. At Pendleton Heights High School in Pendleton, I ...

and

Roosevelt Jones Roosevelt Jones (born January 25, 1993) is an American basketball coach and former professional basketball player. He played college basketball for Butler Bulldogs men's basketball, Butler. At O'Fallon Township High School, he led the team to the ...

. He was marred by a slump of form at the end of the season. In the Round of 64 of the NCAA tournament, Martin scored eight points in 51 seconds to propel the Bulldogs to a 71–61 win against

Texas Tech Texas Tech University (Texas Tech, Tech, or TTU) is a public research university in Lubbock, Texas. Established on , and called Texas Technological College until 1969, it is the main institution of the five-institution Texas Tech University Sys ...

. As a sophomore, Martin was named to the Second Team All- Big East. After the season, he lost some weight and attended a training camp in

Long Beach, California Long Beach is a city in Los Angeles County, California. It is the 42nd-most populous city in the United States, with a population of 466,742 as of 2020. A charter city, Long Beach is the seventh-most populous city in California. Incorporate ...

Junior season (2016–2017)

Coming into his junior year, Martin was named to the Preseason First Team All- Big East. Martin was named Big East Player of the Week on December 19, 2016, after scoring 28 points on 9-of-16 shooting in an 83–78 victory over

Indiana Indiana () is a U.S. state in the Midwestern United States. It is the 38th-largest by area and the 17th-most populous of the 50 States. Its capital and largest city is Indianapolis. Indiana was admitted to the United States as the 19th s ...

. He did this despite going scoreless for the first 15 minutes. He had 22 points on January 28, 2017, against Georgetown. In the final nine games of the season, after a slump in February, he came off the bench to average 17.7 points per game while shooting 50 percent. He was again named Big East Player of the Week on February 27, 2017, after a week in which he scored 22 points and pulled down eight rebounds in a 74–66 upset over Villanova and posted 25 points and seven rebounds in an 88–79 victory against Xavier. Despite dealing with lower back spasms, Martin scored 19 points, grabbed six rebounds, and made four assists in Butler's 74–65 victory over

Middle Tennessee State Middle Tennessee State University (MTSU or MT) is a public university in Murfreesboro, Tennessee. Founded in 1911 as a normal school, the university consists of eight Undergraduate education, undergraduate colleges as well as a college of Postgr ...

to reach the Sweet 16. In his junior season, Martin led the Bulldogs in scoring (16.0 points per game) and rebounding (5.8 per game) while shooting 43 percent from the floor and 35 percent from behind the arc. He was one of ten finalists for the

Julius Erving Award The Julius Erving Small Forward of the Year Award is an annual basketball award given by the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame to the top men's collegiate small forward. Following the success of the Bob Cousy Award which had been awarde ...

as Division I's top small forward. Martin was a Second Team All-Big East selection as a junior. The National Association of Basketball Coaches named Martin to the All‐District 5 Second Team on March 22. After the season, Martin undertook an internship with the TV station WTHR-13, working in video production and editing. He did not enter the NBA draft, since he wants to improve his mobility, and he is cooking his own food as a means of controlling his diet.

Senior season (2017–2018)

In an 81–69 win over

Utah Utah ( , ) is a state in the Mountain West subregion of the Western United States. Utah is a landlocked U.S. state bordered to its east by Colorado, to its northeast by Wyoming, to its north by Idaho, to its south by Arizona, and to it ...

on December 5, Martin scored 29 points. On December 27, he had 27 points, including a game-winning layup with 2.9 seconds remaining in double overtime, to beat Georgetown 91–89. Martin scored 23 points to help defeat top-ranked Villanova 101–93 on December 30. He had a career-high 37 points in a 94–83 win over Marquette on January 12, 2018. As a senior, Martin averaged 21.2 points and 6.3 rebounds per game. He was named to the First-team All-Big East. Martin scored 27 points in the first-round NCAA tournament matchup versus

Arkansas Arkansas ( ) is a landlocked state in the South Central United States. It is bordered by Missouri to the north, Tennessee and Mississippi to the east, Louisiana to the south, and Texas and Oklahoma to the west. Its name is from the Osage ...

and surpassed the 2,000-point threshold. He had 29 points in the 76–73 loss to

Purdue Purdue University is a public land-grant research university in West Lafayette, Indiana, and the flagship campus of the Purdue University system. The university was founded in 1869 after Lafayette businessman John Purdue donated land and money ...

in the Round of 32. Martin was a finalist for the Julius Erving Award as the nation's top small forward. He finished his career at Butler with 2,047 points, the second highest in school history.

Professional career

Riesen Ludwigsburg (2018–2019)

Prior to the

2018 NBA draft The 2018 NBA Draft was held on June 21, 2018, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. National Basketball Association (NBA) teams took turns selecting amateur United States college basketball players and other eligible players, including inte ...

, Martin worked out for 12 NBA teams. After going undrafted, he signed a Summer League deal with the Utah Jazz. On July 31, 2018, Martin signed with MHP Riesen Ludwigsburg of the

Basketball Bundesliga The Basketball Bundesliga (BBL) (English language: ''Federal Basketball League''), for sponsorship reasons named easyCredit BBL, is the highest level league of professional club basketball in Germany. The league comprises 18 teams. A BBL season ...

. Martin averaged 13.7 points and 4.4 rebounds per game in 27 games in Germany.

Minnesota Timberwolves (2019–2020)

Martin joined the Minnesota Timberwolves for the

2019 NBA Summer League The 2019 NBA Summer League was held at the Thomas and Mack Center and Cox Pavilion in Las Vegas, Nevada on the campus of University of Nevada, Las Vegas. It began on July 5 and ended on July 15. All 30 teams and two national teams, China and Croat ...

, and after impressing for the team, he signed a two-way contract with the Timberwolves. He made his NBA debut on October 15 but was inactive in the next nine games. Martin scored 14 points and six rebounds in a 112–102 win over the Utah Jazz on November 18. He scored a then-career-high 17 points and 6 rebounds in a 94–88 loss to the

Cleveland Cavaliers The Cleveland Cavaliers (often referred to as the Cavs) are an American professional basketball team based in Cleveland. The Cavaliers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference (NBA), Ea ...

on December 28. Less than a week later, Martin had 12 points and eight rebounds on January 2, 2020, in a 99–84 win over the

Golden State Warriors The Golden State Warriors are an American professional basketball team based in San Francisco. The Warriors compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA), as a member of the league's Western Conference Pacific Division. Founded in 194 ...

. In the G League, Martin posted 39 points for the

Iowa Wolves The Iowa Wolves are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Des Moines, Iowa, and are affiliated with the Minnesota Timberwolves. The Wolves play their home games at the Wells Fargo Arena and compete in the Western ...

in a 163–143 loss to the

Stockton Kings The Stockton Kings are an American professional basketball team of the NBA G League based in Stockton, California, and are affiliated with the Sacramento Kings. The Kings play their home games at the Stockton Arena and compete in the G League' ...

on January 11. Martin was called up to Minnesota and had 12 points and five rebounds on February 3 in a 113–109 loss to the Sacramento Kings while filling in for the injured

Allen Crabbe Allen Lester Crabbe III (born April 9, 1992) is an American professional basketball player who last played for the Westchester Knicks of the NBA G League. He played college basketball for the California Golden Bears men's basketball, California Go ...

. On February 23, Martin scored a career-high 21 points along with 4 rebounds in a 128–116 loss to the

Denver Nuggets The Denver Nuggets are an American professional basketball team based in Denver. The Nuggets compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Western Conference Northwest Division. The team was founded as the D ...

Indiana Pacers (2020–2022)

On November 26, 2020, Martin signed with the

Indiana Pacers The Indiana Pacers are an American professional basketball team based in Indianapolis. The Pacers compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Central Division. The Pacers were first esta ...

on a two-year contract. He scored a then-season-high 11 points off the bench in 104–93 loss against the Sacramento Kings on May 5, 2021. On May 10, 2021, Martin scored a new career high of 25 points against the Cleveland Cavaliers. On January 6, 2022, Martin was waived by the Pacers.

Boston Celtics (2022)

On February 23, 2022, Martin signed a 10-day contract with the

Boston Celtics The Boston Celtics ( ) are an American professional basketball team based in Boston. The Celtics compete in the National Basketball Association (NBA) as a member of the league's Eastern Conference Atlantic Division. Founded in 1946 as one of t ...

. He signed a second 10-day contract on March 5.

Grand Rapids Gold (2022)

On March 18, 2022, Martin was acquired via available player pool by the

Grand Rapids Gold The Grand Rapids Gold are an American professional basketball team in the NBA G League based in Grand Rapids, Michigan, and are affiliated with the Denver Nuggets. The Gold play their home games at Van Andel Arena. They began play as the Anaheim ...

. On March 25, he was waived.

Birmingham Squadron (2022–2023)

On November 4, 2022, Martin was named to the opening-night roster for the Birmingham Squadron.

Pınar Karşıyaka (2023–present)

On June 28, 2023, Martin signed with

of the Basketbol Süper Ligi.

Career statistics

NBA

Regular season

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Boston Boston (), officially the City of Boston, is the state capital and most populous city of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, as well as the cultural and financial center of the New England region of the United States. It is the 24th- mo ...

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Play-in

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References

External links

DraftExpress profileButler Bulldogs bio
{{DEFAULTSORT:Martin, Kelan 1995 births Living people American expatriate basketball people in Germany American expatriate basketball people in Turkey American men's basketball players Ballard High School (Louisville, Kentucky) alumni Basketball players from Louisville, Kentucky Birmingham Squadron players Boston Celtics players Butler Bulldogs men's basketball players Grand Rapids Gold players Indiana Pacers players Iowa Wolves players Karşıyaka basketball players Minnesota Timberwolves players Riesen Ludwigsburg players Small forwards Undrafted National Basketball Association players