Burlingame’s Zaden Martin: Athlete of the Week

Against Christopher-Gilroy in the tournament final, Zaden drove to the bucket and used a spinning floater in the lane to knock down the game-winning shot with 10 seconds left in a 45-44 win over Christopher-Gilroy at Westmont High School Friday night.

It capped a three-game tournament that saw Martin fill the stat sheet and let people know that despite graduating five starters from last season’s CCS championship team, the Panthers still have plenty left to be successful during the 2022-23 season.

For his efforts, Martin is the Daily Journal Athlete of the Week.

“He’s been really heady and really tough,” said Burlingame head coach Jeff Dowd. “He’s kind of a hybrid. He kind of runs as a point-forward for us. He usually has a quickness matchup at that spot and is doing a great job getting to the rim.”

When asked to nail down his position, Martin said he would be considered a point guard. But he believes there is much more to his game than to limit him to one spot.

“Right now, I feel I can play 1 through 5 (point guard through center),” Martin said. “I don’t really have a set position.”

It’s that versatility that has allowed Martin to show his all-around game as Burlingame is off to a 4-0 start to the season.

In the tournament opener, a 64-44 win over Leland, Martin scored 13 points, grabbed seven rebounds, handed out seven assists and came up with a steal.

He followed that with 12-6-2-2 in a 45-38 win over Los Gatos and against Christopher in the final, he had 14 points, five rebounds, five assists and two more steals.

“I would categorize him as a playmaker,” Dowd said. “His strength is getting downhill. If he can’t finish himself, he makes a lot of great opportunities for others with his great passes.”

Martin readily admits he is not a prolific 3-point shooter. In fact, he’s made only one 3 on just four attempts. But he figures why would he use a secondary attack when his main weapon is his aggressiveness?

“The best part of my game is getting to the basket,” Martin said. “I can [shoot the 3], but it’s been tough for guys to stop me (attacking the rim). My big improvement is finding other guys.”

Said Dowd: “That’s the strength of his game and he’s good at playing to his strengths.”

Dowd is not surprised to see Martin blossom in his senior season. He watched Martin improve for the last three years. It’s just now he has an opportunity to show off his game to the general public.

And while it was hard finding playing time behind the likes of Sean Richardson and Lou Martineau the previous two seasons, his work with and against those guys in practice made him that much better.

“[He’s] been battling against good players and trying to get minutes (the last two seasons), but he was always getting better,” Dowd said. “[He] wants to go out and prove he can win games.”

In addition to Martin, MJ Dowd and Kyle Haslam are two other three-year varsity players for the Panthers this season. They have all been part of back-to-back CCS championship teams and the general consensus is that the Panthers are rebuilding this season.

They want to prove they’re just rearranging the pieces.

“I think there is a sense we’re like the veteran group on a two-time championship team,” Martin said. “Last year, it was those seniors time. … It’s definitely our time to show we have the experience (to win games) being on a championship team.”

If the Panthers are going to have shot at a three-peat, Martin will have to be a key piece. Dowd believes he has the game to do it.

“He’s important because he makes plays and is a really good rebounder. He can post up. He can create a lot of mismatch problems,” Dowd said. “For us, so far, he’s been phenomenal.”