MANILA – Gilas Pilipinas prospect Remy Martin has declared his intention to participate in the 2020 National Basketball Association (NBA) Draft after spending his collegiate career with the Arizona State University (ASU) Sun Devils in Division I of the United States’ National Collegiate Athletic Association.
In a statement on March 31, Martin expressed his readiness to jump to the world’s biggest basketball league in hopes of becoming the first Filipino-American in the NBA since the entry of Utah Jazz guard Jordan Clarkson in 2014.
“Starting from a young age, I have worked towards the opportunity to play in the NBA and I have now decided to take another step into making my dream a reality,” Martin said. “I will forever cherish the time I have spent at ASU.”
Martin was a solid caliber for the Sun Devils in the 2019-2020 NCAA season after averaging 19.1 points. 4.1 assists and 3.1 rebounds, which placed his team on the cusp of a third straight NCAA Tournament appearance before the event was cancelled due to the coronavirus disease 2019 pandemic.
A six-foot guard from Chatsworth, California, the Filipino-American made his presence felt on the floor during his rookie year in the 2017-18 NCAA season by providing an energetic spark off the bench to help the Sun Devils reach the NCAA Tournament for the first time in four years.
Martin then went to beef up his
contributions in his sophomore year with statistics of 12.9 points and 5
assists while leading the Pac-12 Conference with a 2.4 assist-to-turnover ratio.
It was at that time that he and his team
made their second consecutive NCAA Tournament appearance.
During his junior year, he was second in the Pac-12 Conference scoring
leaderboard and was considered as a front-runner for the conference player of
the year award until Oregon’s Payton Pritchard surged ahead late in the season.
A long time Gilas Pilipinas prospect, Martin was named by former head coach Vincent “Chot” Reyes as part of the “Gilas 23” pool for the 2023 FIBA (International Basketball Federation) World Cup, which the country will co-host with Japan and Indonesia./PN
