Former No. 1 pick Kenyon Martin announces his retirement
Former No. 1 draft pick Kenyon Martin announced his retirement from professional basketball to Yahoo! Sports on Thursday.
Martin was selected No. 1 by the then-New Jersey Nets back in 2000. He went on to have a 15-year NBA career that spanned five different teams.
The 37-year-old most recently played for the Milwaukee Bucks, appearing in 11 games and logging 104 minutes in 2014–15.
“It's been a great 15 years,” Martin told Yahoo! Sports. “Thanks to all the fans that supported me over the years. But a time does come when you have to walk away, and the time is now for me. I'm ready for the next chapter of my life. I would like to thank the Nets, Nuggets, Clippers, Knicks and Bucks for the opportunity to play the game that I love.”
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Martin helped the Nets reach two straight NBA Finals in 2002 and 2003. His best year came in 2003–04, when he averaged career highs of 16.7 points and 9.5 rebounds while shooting 48.8% from the field.
After four years with the Nets he was traded to the Denver Nuggets, where he spent the next seven seasons. After averaging 11.5 points and 9.4 rebounds for Denver in 2009–10, Martin did not reach double figures in scoring again, nor did he play in 50 games in a season again.
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Martin told Yahoo that he would consider something in coaching in the future “if something comes up.”
GALLERY: NBA's No. 1 draft picks in the lottery era
The NBA's No. 1 Draft Picks in the Lottery Era
1985: Patrick Ewing
Manny Millan/SI
1986: Brad Daugherty
Manny Millan/SI
1987: David Robinson
Damian Strohmeyer, David E. Klutho, Manny Millan, John W. McDonough/SI
1988: Danny Manning
Mike Powell/Getty Images
1989: Pervis Ellison
Mitchell Layton/Getty Images
1990: Derrick Coleman
John Iacono, Chuck Solomon/SI
1991: Larry Johnson
David E. Klutho/SI
1992: Shaquille O'Neal
Manny Millan, John W. McDonough(2), Walter Iooss Jr./SI
1993: Chris Webber
Bill Frakes/SI
1994: Glenn Robinson
Manny Millan/SI
1995: Joe Smith
David E. Klutho/SI
1996: Allen Iverson
Manny Millan, Al Tielemans/SI
1997: Tim Duncan
John W. McDonough(3), Bob Rosato/SI
1998: Michael Olowokandi
John W. McDonough/SI
1999: Elton Brand
John W. McDonough/SI
2000: Kenyon Martin
John W. McDonough/SI
2001: Kwame Brown
John Biever/SI
2002: Yao Ming
John W. McDonough/SI
2003: LeBron James
Greg Nelson/SI
2004: Dwight Howard
Walter Iooss Jr./SI
2005: Andrew Bogut
John Biever/SI
2006: Andrea Bargnani
David E. Klutho/SI
2007: Greg Oden
Rick Bowmer/AP
2008: Derrick Rose
David E. Klutho/SI
2009: Blake Griffin
John W. McDonough/SI
2010: John Wall
David E. Klutho/SI
2011: Kyrie Irving
John Biever/SI
2012: Anthony Davis
Greg Nelson/SI
2013: Anthony Bennett
Greg Nelson/SI
2014: Andrew Wiggins
Ron Hoskins/NBAE via Getty Images
2015: Karl-Anthony Towns
Isaac Baldizon/Getty Images
- Molly Geary
