It was a routine conversation between teammates just before tipoff.

Kevin Martin told Omri Casspi the Kings needed to beat Memphis on Monday night, and they did just that in a 127-116 overtime thriller.

Yet it was an atypical exchange because this was Martin, the Kings' lead-by-example shooting guard, who is certainly no Ron Artest when it comes to bold proclamations. It was relevant because it wasn't just empty chatter.

With 48 points in 52 minutes, Martin had easily the most deliberate and complete performance of his six-year career.

Not only did he score, Martin was a willing and capable defender. He held the Grizzlies' O.J. Mayo to four of his 22 points in the fourth quarter and overtime and made four steals for just the fifth time since the start of the 2006-07 season.

"I told Omri (Monday) night that we had to win that game, and I don't think I've ever said that before," said Martin, third in the league in scoring at 31.0 points per game. "I said, 'There's no ifs, ands or buts (about it) – we had to win that game."

And many more.

"This year, I'm just a much more driven player because of what we went through last year," Martin continued. "It's just a different mentality. That's what happens when you go through a year like you did last year. Seventeen wins.

"I've always been driven, but it's going to be a Kevin that's aggressive from the start just to set a tone. … This year, it's just about being driven and not settling for anything."

Wins – and what it takes to get them – will dictate all of it. His offense and his defense. His choice to speak up or stay quiet. And, of course, how he is perceived.

While Martin is known as an efficient and creative scorer, he is a high scorer on a lowly team. It's a distinction that rarely comes with acclaim.

"I think that he's definitely a guy who has established himself as a guy who can score the basketball in the league on a consistent basis," ESPN analyst and former player Jalen Rose said recently. "I don't think that he's a franchise-caliber player … or – based on the guys he's going to go against on a nightly basis on the perimeter – an All-Star-caliber player. But he is a guy who's going to be able to give some guys headaches because he can score the ball."

Yet with the Kings out of the national spotlight in recent years, the notion of having an All-Star for the first time since 2004 (Brad Miller and Peja Stojakovic) would be a boon for the organization.

As for Martin, it's no longer a focus.

"Making an All-Star Game is not going to validate my career," he said. "I get more from getting respect for how I go out there and play, to have the organization be proud of me as a player. … I'm just worrying about wins and losses, and all that will take care of itself. I want respect from my teammates and the organization. I don't need respect from Jalen Rose."

Martin has been earning even more respect from his teammates with his early dedication to defense.

After resting his left ankle that limited him to 51 games last season, Martin spent much of the offseason focusing on defending the way that – as he reiterated – he simply couldn't while "playing on one leg" last season.

"My trainer, David Thorpe, he doesn't even look at my points anymore," Martin said. "He's so locked in on (me) playing defense. I'm trying to be active with steals. … That's just one of those areas I want to keep working on. I'm taking pride in that area. I'm driven in that area. It's just not putting up big numbers anymore."

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