As a power forward, he played for the New Jersey Nets, Denver Nuggets, Los Angeles Clippers, New York Knicks and Milwaukee Bucks of the NBA, and the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of China.

Shortly after, the family moved south to the Oak Cliff neighborhood of Dallas, where Martin's mother worked two jobs.

[1] Martin attended three high schools in four years, but he sought refuge in sports, playing basketball, baseball, and football.

As a senior in 1999–2000, Martin averaged 18.9 points, 9.7 rebounds and 3.5 blocks per game during a season in which the Bearcats were ranked #1 for 12 weeks.

Martin remains the Bearcats' all-time leader in career blocked shots (292) and field goal percentage (.586).

[3] Martin's debut game was played on October 31, 2000, in an 86–82 loss to the Cleveland Cavaliers, where he recorded to 10 points, seven rebounds and two assists.

Along with Jason Kidd, Kerry Kittles, Keith Van Horn and Richard Jefferson, Martin led the Nets to the 2002 NBA Finals, where they were swept by the Los Angeles Lakers.

On January 29, 2003, Martin recorded a career-best 21 rebounds, while adding 19 points and eight assists, in an 86–78 win over the Washington Wizards.

[5] That season, his third in the NBA, Martin again helped his team to the finals, where the Nets lost in six games to the San Antonio Spurs.

At the end of the 2003–04 season, Martin was traded to the Denver Nuggets for three future first-round draft picks in a sign-and-trade deal.

During that playoff series against the Los Angeles Clippers, Martin was suspended from the Denver Nuggets indefinitely for "conduct detrimental to the team.

[16] Martin became an unrestricted free agent in the summer of 2011; however, due to the 2011 NBA lockout, he opted to sign a one-year contract with the Xinjiang Flying Tigers of the Chinese Basketball Association.

[19] Martin was initially not allowed to return to the NBA until the Flying Tigers' season ended on February 15, 2012, if not later due to the 2012 CBA Playoffs.

In 2019, Martin requested that his child support obligations be reduced to reflect his lower income since the end of his NBA career.

He stated that his current obligations, which included paying his ex-wife Heather $3,000 per month in child support, plus "additional child support" of $7,000 per month in credit card bills, a new car for Heather every three years and private school fees for the children, were no longer affordable.