Jarl Martin: "Where I come from, a lot of people don't make it in life"

The phone call from David Blatt ("I almost signed in Turkey"), the acclimatization ("It's much more difficult to play in Europe") and the short career in the NBA ("I realized that the players who earn a lot will be ahead of me").

The new guest of Maccabi Tel Aviv opens a season and tells about childhood in one of the most violent cities in the USA

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06/10/2022

Thursday, 06 October 2022, 12:00

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Jarl Martin was sitting in his house waiting for the contract from Galatasaray.

The Turkish team was about to sign him for the upcoming season, but then a phone call arrived that changed the whole picture.

"I was supposed to sign, but David Blatt called me, we talked for a few minutes and he brought up Oded Ketch on Feistime," says Maccabi Tel Aviv's new foreigner in an interview with Walla!

sport.

"The next morning the offer came, and it was a real blessing. I followed Maccabi in the past, I watched the games when my friend Johnny O'Briant played here. The next step I took was to sign a contract."

Tonight (Thursday, 9:05 p.m.) Martin will be introduced for the first time to the Menorah Mivathim Hall full of yellow crowds, when his Maccabi host Zalgiris Kovna in the opening of the Euroleague.

Until now he only met the fans at the airport and the small hall in Hadera.

"I'm very excited and dying to get to the first home game. I've heard amazing stories, I felt a bit of it in the Winner's Cup, and I can only imagine what the Euroleague games will look like."

"We have a lot of great players, the talent in this team is unbelievable. The most important thing for us at this stage is to work on the chemistry between us. Once we manage to do that, the momentum will take us and the sky will be the limit."

"The talent in this group is unbelievable."

Jarel Martin (Photo: Audi Citiat)

Martin, 28 years old, was selected by Memphis 25th in the 2015 draft. For him it was a kind of highlight moment in life.

"Where I grew up, there aren't many players who reach this level. To go to college for two amazing years, and to put myself in a position where I can even be considered a candidate to reach the NBA, is a blessing. All the hard work I put in paid off."

And when Martin talks about where he grew up, it's important to expand.

He was born in Baton Rouge, the capital of Louisiana.

This is one of the cities with the worst reputation in the US, and only two percent of the cities are more dangerous to live in than it. One out of every 108 people in the city will commit a violent crime, almost 50 percent more than the average in Louisiana itself, when it comes to burglaries and thefts - the average in the city is double and even higher than the average in the US "B.

On average, about 150 crimes will occur per square kilometer, five and a half times the national average.

When he played last year in Australia, Martin said that he witnessed several shootings and cases where classes were suspended at the school where he attended.

"When I was growing up, I always wanted to be the person who said good things about him, I didn't want to be the one who said bad things about him, it led me in life," he says candidly.

"I was a child who just wanted to get out of there. Where I come from, many people do not succeed in life, do not manage to make this transition, do not manage to provide for my family. It is very difficult. And for the fact that I succeeded, I bless every day."

"The guys who worked hard in life to get where they got, like me, dedicate themselves to the game and fall in love with it. They put themselves in a position that will allow them to get out of there. I was very close to Brandon, I played on the same team as him in high school. I also met Glenn when I was in high school, we played basketball when he would come home. They took me under their wing and helped me reach until I reached the NBA."

"We worked quite a bit together last summer, before I signed in Israel. He told me about the country and said only good things. I'm looking forward to meeting him."

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"He brought up Ketch on Feistime, and the next day the offer came. It was a blessing."

David Blatt (Photo: Audi Citiat)

Martin played four seasons in the NBA, three in Memphis and another season in Orlando.

His best season was the third, in which he appeared in 73 games, in 37 he started in the top five and scored more than 7 points on average.

In the first two years with the Grizzlies, he accumulated only 69 games, about 14 minutes per game, and in Orlando he participated in 42 games in less than eight minutes per evening.

"I had a lot of ups and downs in Memphis," he says, "in the first two years I had a lot of foot injuries, and I played behind a lot of veteran players. It was hard for me to find time on the field. In the third year I could start in the five and play a lot, and it already felt much better are good".

"It's difficult and challenging. You have to stay positive in times like this. I came to Orlando and there were players in front of me who signed very heavy contracts, and I realized that the team should let them play before me because they are paid a lot of money. I waited for my number to be called, and every time I had an opportunity I think I took advantage of it ".

At the start of the 2019/20 season, he was released from the NBA and found himself in the G League, just a month before the outbreak of the Corona virus.

After more than a year in which he barely played, he unexpectedly signed in December 2020 with the Australian Sydney Kings.

"One of the people who worked with me in Memphis got the position of professional manager in Sydney, and we had a very good relationship. He told me about the situation in Australia, and I decided to give it a chance. I thought it would give me motivation through playing minutes and the opportunity to eventually return to the NBA. I think the decision was successful. The first year was good, but I got into trouble with injuries, and in the second season I brought them a championship."

"They were very strict. When I got there they canceled the season, and you couldn't be out at certain times. I was alone most of the time. The season was constantly postponed, I was there two months longer than I planned, and it was very challenging."

"The fact that I create space on the field and score from the outside can help a lot."

Martin with Oded Ketch (photo: official website, paobc)

Martin has been in Israel for about a month and a half, and has already had time to visit with the group in Jerusalem ("My most exciting experience so far").

At Maccabi Tel Aviv, his role will be to space the field with his shooting from the power forward position, which he reaches from his height of 208 centimeters.

"I just want to keep up with the team. The fact that I create space on the field and score from outside can help a lot. This is a new team, a new method. I'm looking for myself and want to see where I can contribute and put us in a position where we can win as much as possible. I want to be A significant part of the team, someone who is expected to make moves."

"He creates for everyone. He involves everyone in the game, passes amazing balls, creates moves for us, he is the piece we were missing. His ability to create for others is amazing, and that is what we need."

"It is much more difficult to play in Europe. There are more big players who crowd the paint, and there is no law here that the guard is not allowed to stand in the paint for more than three seconds. That is why it is more crowded inside, and as a tall player it makes it difficult for me to make moves."

"Our athletic abilities. This is without a doubt our most prominent advantage. I feel that we are very focused on defense. If we can guard well, it can take us far. The coach constantly talks to us about rebounding. He wants all the players on the team to go for rebounds on both sides of the court, and wants To get as many points as possible through the offensive rebound."

"I still have the dream of returning to the NBA, but I'm here now, and I'm focusing on that. I'm only thinking about that, I want to end the season with the championship."

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