Martin Can’t Do Homework

It would have been a story of symmetry, Darrick Martin’s returning to Los Angeles 12 years after his final game at UCLA, helping take the Minnesota Timberwolves toward the NBA Finals.

It has turned into a sonnet of struggle, neither Martin nor his teammates able to withstand the Lakers, the latest illustration a 92-85 loss Thursday in Game 4 that turned the series formidably in the Lakers’ direction.

Martin and the Timberwolves left L.A. in a more somber mood than when they arrived, Martin fading after a memorable Game 2 and his teammates right behind him.

Martin, who grew up in Compton, was the hero last Sunday in Minnesota, accruing 15 points, six assists and no turnovers in place of injured Sam Cassell as the Timberwolves dominated the Lakers and evened the series.

Then came a scoreless Game 3 for Martin, with only one assist, and a three-point effort in Game 4, also with one assist.

Martin played both games in front of 20 friends and family members at Staples Center, compounding his disappointment.

“It’s a little frustrating for me,” said Martin, 33. “I wanted to win at least one out here but it’s OK. We’ll take care of business in Game 5 and then come back here and we’ll have another shot to win.”

Martin, who wended his way to the Timberwolves via a zig-zag career that included three seasons with the Clippers and CBA stops in Yakima, Wash., and Sioux Falls, S.D., fell back to obscurity the last two games, making one of eight shots in 34 minutes.

After Game 4, he seemed to have a harder time talking about his scoring shortage than Kobe Bryant’s 18-point third quarter.

“He had a good night, a good third quarter,” Martin said of Bryant. “He stepped his game up and kind of got them over the hump.”

Judging by Cassell’s postgame sentiments, Martin will have to be the point guard to step forward for the Timberwolves on Saturday in Game 5.

Cassell, who played only five minutes Thursday because of back spasms and a sore hip, scored three points on one-for-three shooting. He did not start for only the second time in the Timberwolves’ 98 games this season and did not play until the third quarter.

“It’s tough right now,” Cassell said. “Not having an ability to do it -- I understand that injuries are part of professional basketball, but it’s just tough right now for me.”

Said Coach Flip Saunders: “He really didn’t feel comfortable. He thought in the second half that he wanted to give it a go. After a while, he just couldn’t go.”

Martin, who moved with his family from Colorado to Compton when he was 4, returns every summer to hold a youth camp at Compton College.

There was hope in his voice that he would return before then, perhaps as soon as Monday for Game 6, but reality could get in the way.

Martin doesn’t want to think about that. He wants 20 tickets for Game 6.

“The character of this team is very good, so you don’t have to worry about us coming back and competing,” he said. “We will do that in Game 5.”