Martin Twins Look to Breakout in Opener

With the 2015-16 just about to kick off, NC State still has a lot of unanswered questions. The questions aren’t necessarily about the talent, this team is stacked with raw talent. The questions are about roles. Some players are taking on new roles, others are growing into larger versions of the roles they had last year.

Two players that we’re going to be keeping a close eye on in the opener are Cody and Caleb Martin. The twins were always looked at as prototypical Gottfried guys. They’re big, athletic, have great motors and can play multiple positions. Last year however, both had trouble finding their long term niche. They earned their minutes by hustling, staying in the passing lanes and getting tons of deflections on defense, but they both had trouble finding a true position.

Their main problem was their offensive consistency. They both showed glimpses at times, but like any freshman they could be unreliable shooting from 3 or finishing through contact. This year, that should change.

A year in the ACC has the Martin’s ready. Caleb is looking at a starting role and will be relied upon for his ability to attack the rim off the bounce as well as becoming more accurate from the perimeter. Cody is more of an interesting case. With the Pack’s talented but thin front court, he’ll be asked to fill in at the 4 at times. Cody will also be asked to fill in, at times, for Cat Barber at the point. On paper this may not make sense, but it’s a Gottfried experiment that could very way pay dividends.

One of NC State’s biggest questions is ‘Who steps in for Barber when he’s gassed, in foul trouble, or (God forbid) injured?’ A year ago, the answer of Cody Martin may haven’t made much sense. But with his size, speed, handles, and an offseason of training, it might just be genius. Cody has already shown that he can guard other point guards on defense, so if he can take care of the basketball, he could create massive mismatches and carve out quite an unsuspecting role for himself.

We’ll be watching close tonight.