NET NOTES
The bottom line for the Nets regarding a flu-weakened Kenyon Martin heading into Game 5 of the NBA Finals last night was this: A sub-par Kenyon Martin was better than no Kenyon Martin at all.
And Martin, battling a bug for several days, was sub-par, scoring four points with nine rebounds in the Nets’ 93-83 Game 5 loss to the Spurs.
“No question in my mind, 75 percent K-Mart is better than no K-Mart at all,” Jason Kidd said of Martin, who skipped the morning workout yesterday after going home from practice Thursday because of flu-like symptoms.
Martin started the game wearing a red, white and blue headband, complementing the Nets’ throwback uniforms of the 1976 ABA championship team. Martin played with all his customary effort and hustle – witness his headlong dive into the seats at 11:29 of the second quarter for a rebound of his block on Speedy Claxton. He got periodic rests, like in the first quarter when he exited at 5:49 for almost two minutes.
Martin called in yesterday, and considered taking part in the morning workout, but Byron Scott told him not to.
“I just told him to stay home, get some rest,” Scott said. “It would take something traumatic to not allow Kenyon to play.”
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The Nets’ pre-draft workouts continued yesterday with an assortment of players, including four small forwards: Kyle Korver, Creighton’s all-time 3-point shooting leader; James Jones, Miami’s versatile Academic All-American; Arizona’s Luke Walton, Bill’s son, and Russian Viktor Khryapa, whom many compare to Utah’s Andrei Kirilenko. Additionally, the Nets worked out Aleksander Vujacic, a guard who played in Italy.