San Antonio Spurs: 15 players you may have forgot played in San Antonio

23 Apr 2001: The San Antonio Spurs huddle during game two of round one of the NBA playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The Spurs won 86-69. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez/Allsport
23 Apr 2001: The San Antonio Spurs huddle during game two of round one of the NBA playoffs against the Minnesota Timberwolves at the Alamodome in San Antonio, Texas. The Spurs won 86-69. DIGITAL IMAGE. Mandatory Credit: Ronald Martinez/Allsport /
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(Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images)
(Photo by Ronald Cortes/Getty Images) /

No. 10: Kevin Martin (2015-16)

For players without All-Star appearances and championships, the “fight” for our memories is probably the next closest honor. Fair or unfair, Kevin Martin’s career has arguably become a footnote; he was a part of one of the more seismic, culture-shifting trades in basketball history.

That being the case, it’s easy to forget how lethal a scorer he was during his prime. From 2006-07 to 2014-15, only six players produced more 20-point seasons. From a win-loss standpoint, those numbers were fruitless, but it gives way to wondering how differently his career arc weaves in a winning culture.

In 2015-16, that chance — the last of Martin’s 12-year career — came, in the form of the San Antonio Spurs. Toiling away on a 19-41 Minnesota team, the awkward-shooting, lanky two-guard got a contract buyout that allowed him to join a largely-forgotten Spurs team that was 52-9, and salivating for a championship.

light. Related Story. 10 stars you forgot played for the Phoenix Suns

The marriage, on paper at least, appeared to make sense. We often hear athletes say they’d “give their left nut” for a championship; Manu Ginobili did, literally. Testicular surgery left him out, and the Spurs were struggling to find long-range snipers. It had only been a year ago that Martin averaged 20.0 points per game.

The early returns were a mixed bag, but trended upward as the season came to a close. In the first two postseason games for the Spurs, Martin poured in back-to-back double-figure scoring games but clocked DNPs in four of his next five games.

Expected to be a minor reinforcement in the event of a Spurs-Warriors Conference Finals, Martin never received his chance. Months later, he announced his retirement via a newspaper ad in Ohio.