Kenyon Martin

Martin was the embodiment of relentless, snarling energy on the court. As the first overall pick in 2000, he carried real expectations, and his ferocious dunks and shot-blocking for those early-2000s New Jersey Nets teams powered them to back-to-back Finals runs. His college season at Cincinnati was downright dominant before injury cut it short, and the Wooden Award was well earned. He was an old-school power forward who played with an edge that drove opponents crazy and fans wild. Knee injuries blunted his peak, but at his best he was a defensive anchor and emotional heartbeat for every team he played on.

Kenyon Martin (born December 30, 1977) is an American former professional basketball player born in Saginaw, Michigan. He starred at the University of Cincinnati, where he won the John R. Wooden Award in 2000, and was selected first overall in the 2000 NBA Draft by the New Jersey Nets. Over a long NBA career he played for teams including the Nets, Denver Nuggets, and others, earning an All-Star selection.

Name (English)

Kenyon Martin

Name (Japanese)

ケニオン・マーティン

Reading

けにおん・まーてぃん

Born

December 30, 1977 (age 48)

Zodiac / Chinese zodiac

Capricorn / Snake

Origin

Saginaw, Michigan, United States

Height

206cm

Occupation

Basketball player

High school

Bryan Adams High School

University

University of Cincinnati

Awards & achievements

• 2000 John R. Wooden Award

Motto

Private

• Xhttps://x.com/kenyonmertinsr
• Wikipedia (Japanese)https://ja.wikipedia.org/wiki/%E3%82%B1%E3%83%8B%E3%82%AA%E3%83%B3%E3%83%BB%E3%83%9E%E3%83%BC%E3%83%86%E3%82%A3%E3%83%B3

Tags

• Michigan native
• Basketball player

Last updated

2026-06-02

Facts are limited to publicly available information up to 2024; non-public or unconfirmed items are omitted. English text is machine-assisted (facts translated by Sonnet, "My Take" written by Opus 4.8). The Japanese page is the source of record.