When Nico Harrison traded for Caleb Martin just days following the Luka Doncic trade, it came as another gut punch to fans still collecting their thoughts after losing their franchise star. There's no doubt that Martin will ever live up to the expectations fans have of him, but he is quickly shifting the tide of his Dallas Mavericks tenure.
Following the start of this season, Martin was entering a critical year in his career as he had time to get healthy over the summer, but didn't have a clear role on a Mavericks team that needed defensive depth at the point of attack.
Now, over halfway through the regular season, it's easy to see that Martin has not only carved out a role for himself in Jason Kidd's rotation but is quickly becoming comfortable on both ends of the floor.
The Caleb Martin experience may finally be turning around in Dallas' favor
When it was announced that Martin would be headed to Dallas in a swap for fan-favorite guard Quentin Grimes, fans were instantly thrown into a loop as to why Harrison made that decision. Throughout his career, Martin has been known as a solid floor stretcher with incredible defensive upside, but after battling multiple injuries over the past few seasons, Martin's stock quickly plummeted.
With last season in the rearview and a clear motive ahead to prove doubters wrong, Martin has made a name for himself, even though many thought he would just be another player rotting on the bench. It's still hard to call the Martin for Grimes swap a win for the Mavericks, but following an impressive 17-point outing against the Los Angeles Lakers in a 116-110 loss, his stock has risen.
It's doubtful that the Mavericks would even trade Martin, considering his value around the league would still be considered in a negative fashion, but with him continuing to play better every night, there could be a reality where Martin makes a real impact on the rotation moving forward.
Martin will never be the stat filler that fans saw out of Grimes, but his impact shows way more on the defensive end and from behind the arc. Over this stretch, Martin has continued to shoot the ball well from deep and take confident-looking attempts, which has only fed into his impressive play this season.
Martin still has a long way to go before he captures any hearts of the Mavericks' fanbase, but he is quickly raising some eyebrows. The healthier Martin has gotten, the more confident he has looked, and it shows on a nightly basis.
With the Mavericks looking to build around Cooper Flagg for the future, adding shooting depth behind the young forward has been a formula that has already proven to work, which may be another reason Martin stays on the Mavericks. His play only getting better should be taken as a good sign, and assuming Martin continues to make three-point shots at a solid clip and continues to get better, his Mavericks tenure may end better than it started.