Caleb Martin explains decision to sign two-way deal with Heat and the big adjustment he faces

Caleb Martin is going from a standard NBA contract with the Charlotte Hornets to a two-way deal with the Miami Heat, but he doesn’t view it as a demotion.

Martin, who turns 26 on Sept. 28, sees it as an opportunity to “show everybody that I belong” after he was waived by the Hornets in August.

“The culture and the reputation were the big things that caught my eye,” Martin said to the Miami Herald of what intrigued him about the Heat. “Obviously, the coaching staff and just everybody that’s involved over here. One of the things they said was they’re big on development. They’re going to work with me and do the best they can to make me the best player I can be. They think this is a great spot for me in terms of my playing style and I agree with that.”

Martin, who signed a two-way contract with the Heat on Tuesday, spent the past two seasons on the Hornets’ 15-man roster after going undrafted in 2019 out of Nevada. The 6-5 wing earned a spot in Charlotte’s rotation, averaging 5.3 points, 2.5 rebounds and 1.3 assists in 71 NBA games, including four starts, over the past two seasons.

But the Hornets waived Martin just days before his $1.8 million salary for this upcoming season would have become guaranteed on Aug. 15.

Martin now finds himself with the Heat on a two-way deal, which is usually reserved for undrafted rookies or those with very little NBA experience. In terms of two-way contract players around the league, Martin is a savvy veteran.

“You hear a lot of great things about the organization in Miami,” he said. “It’s clear that they bring in winning players and a winning culture, and they do a great job of molding guys and developing guys through their program. Obviously, those were all key points for me when it’s time to choose somewhere to go.”

The list of former Heat two-way contract players includes Derrick Jones Jr., Duncan Robinson, Max Strus, Gabe Vincent, Kyle Alexander, Matt Williams Jr., Derrick Walton Jr., Daryl Macon, Yante Maten and Chris Silva. Three of those players — Robinson, Strus and Vincent — enter this upcoming season with standard contracts from the Heat.

“It’s evident that they try to find gems and they try to find pieces,” Martin said. “They’re just not bringing guys just to bring guys because that’s what they’re supposed to do or anything like that or they have spots to fill. They bring guys that they believe can contribute or that they believe they can mold into culture guys that they want to keep around. Even though I’m a two-way, my goal is to come in and make an impact right away with my experience and my skill set and my athleticism and just be active. Just feed into that culture and just bring a different type of intensity and spark off the bench.”

The Heat’s other two-way contract player entering the Sept. 28 start of training camp is undrafted Kansas rookie guard Marcus Garrett. Teams can carry up to two players on two-way deals, and those players can be on their NBA team’s active list for as many as 50 regular-season games.

With the Heat expected to enter the season with 14 players signed to standard contracts — one below the NBA limit — to avoid crossing the luxury tax threshold and one of those players (guard Victor Oladipo) expected to miss the first few months of the season as he recovers from knee surgery, it’s not hard to envision Martin logging important minutes this upcoming season.

“My ultimate goal is to become a full-time roster guy,” Martin said. “But I’m just looking to take advantage of the opportunity and learn a lot from a lot of great vets that we got on this team.”

Two-way contract players often spend part of the season in the G League, but Martin has not yet discussed with the Heat whether he’ll end up with its developmental affiliate in Sioux Falls, South Dakota at any point this upcoming season.

When asked to describe his game, Martin said: “I just think I’m a two-way player. I think I bring a defensive tenacity on the court. I think I bring a grittiness to the defensive end, a spark off the bench. I have the capability to score, as well. I can get hot and get buckets at the same time. ... My role is to be flexible and to be versatile, so whatever they need me to do, I’m going to do it.”

At this point, Martin can probably help the Heat most on the defensive end. His combination of athleticism and size at 6-5 and 205 pounds makes him a versatile defender that will add to Miami’s impressive defensive mix.

“Definitely one through four,” Martin said of which positions he can defend. “I even feel comfortable playing the five, to be honest with you, just because I can use different tactics to guard bigger guys and get up on them on the ball and disrupt them putting it on the floor.”

To make the most of any role he has with the Heat, though, Martin will probably need to make a respectable percentage of his threes. After shooting threes exceptionally well in his first NBA season (20 for 37/54.1 percent), he finished just 31 for 125 from deep last season (24.8 percent).

“I think the biggest thing is just being comfortable where I’m at and being comfortable enough to take those shots without second guessing shots,” Martin said. “I just think I had a hard time last year just being in a certain type of situation and kind of putting too much pressure on myself to make every single shot instead of just playing the game comfortably.

“Whenever you get around a culture of guys or a staff that believes in you and allows you and wants you to take those shots and doesn’t want you to second guess, I think that takes every player’s game to the next level. I feel that type of culture here.”

But the move to Miami will require one big adjustment, as he’ll be away from his twin brother Cody for the longest stretch of their lives. They spent their entire college careers together and were roommates as Hornets teammates for the past two seasons, with Cody still on Charlotte’s roster.

“I think this certain situation just puts you in a different mindset and a mode where you’re on your own and you just dive into your game, work and your craft,” Martin said of being away from his twin brother. “So you don’t give yourself a chance to think about, ‘Oh, I’m not around my brother.’ Obviously, it sucks. He’s my best friend. But everybody leaves their best friend all the time. So that’s a good thing about having technology and FaceTime and Call of Duty. We’re going to keep in touch, obviously, every day.”