When they traded James Harden to the Los Angeles Clippers in October, the Philadelphia 76ers set the stage for many significant transactions. The deal’s most obvious effect was to free up salary space, which they would subsequently utilize to sign superstar Paul George as well as important supporting players like Andre Drummond, Kelly Oubre Jr., and Caleb Martin.
They gained more draft capital in the process, which will greatly increase their future working flexibility. But when they got a player who many NBA fans might not have heard of, they also quietly accomplished something else in that move that could prove to be quite significant.
Introducing Kenyon Martin Jr. He is the son of Kenyon Martin, the former first overall pick. He took part in the Slam Dunk Competition in 2023. Prior to the 2023–24 season, he signed with the Clippers, having begun his career with the Houston Rockets.
However, he was traded to Philadelphia after just two games in Los Angeles. With 715 rather forgettable minutes played, he averaged a meager 3.7 points per game while playing with the 76ers. At this time, he is a fringe NBA player who is athletic enough to have potential but who has not yet shown that he can actually help a team win.
However, KJ Martin’s deal was exceptionally significant. In the 2020 NBA Draft, the Rockets selected him with the 52nd overall choice in the second round. Similar to other second-round selections, he lacked significant negotiating leverage. It followed that his starting pay would inevitably be modest; in fact, he earned less than $2 million in the previous season.
This meant that the 76ers only had to pay only $2.1 million in cap space to keep him on the books throughout the offseason while they took care of other matters because of his exceptionally low cap hold as a 2024 free agent. Obviously, signing George, Oubre, Martin, or Drummond was not hampered by that little cap hold.
