Tyrese Martin’s third quarter may see him in an Atlanta Hawks uniform

So, we have seen it countless times before. The Atlanta Hawks built themselves a comfortable lead and then the opposition changes up their defense. This results in them coming back hard, usually to take the win. It usually takes the likes of Trae Young to stop this from happening, however, he is no longer playing Summer League.

The Miami Heat were down by as many as 15 points midway through the second period in their Summer League game against the Hawks. Then they changed their defensive style and came roaring back. They were only down by five at the halftime break.

Then the Heat went ahead early in the third period and the Hawks could not buy a bucket. With Sharife Cooper struggling with his injuries, AJ Griffin yet to debut in Summer League, and Jalen Johnson not playing due to a non-surgical procedure, it was not clear who was going to step up for the Hawks.

Tyrese Martin saved the game and potentially his position with the Atlanta Hawks.

After struggling in the first game of Summer League, Tyrese Martin improved in the second game. However, nothing we have seen from Martin at Summer League could have prepared us for what we saw from him in the third quarter of the Heat game.

In a six-minute burst in the third period, Martin had 13 points in a run which saw the Hawks move ahead. They never surrendered this lead despite being under pressure in the last period. In fact, Martin took a clutch bucket in the last before signaling that his defender was too small.

It is this swagger, backed up by his performance which may see Martin signed to some sort of contract with the Hawks. Griffin has already inked his deal but until the Heat game, Martin had shown the Hawks no reason to sign him. Now that he has shown that he is not afraid to step up, the Hawks should be looking at a two-way deal as a minimum for Martin.