Caitlin Clark’s Former Teammate Kate Martin Sends Strong Message After Career Game

Originally posted on Athlon Sports
By Rowan Fisher-Shotton | Last updated Jun 2, 2025 5:27 PM ET

The Golden State Valkyries entered Sunday’s matchup with the Minnesota Lynx eager to build on their early success as a 2025 expansion franchise.

Despite taking an early lead, they fell 86-75 to the unbeaten Lynx, marking their third straight loss (2-4) to begin the season.

Amid the loss, though, Valkyries guard Kate Martin, a former Hawkeye teammate of Indiana Fever star Caitlin Clark, provided a bright spot.

After struggling through a 26.3% shooting clip over her first four games, Martin scored a career-high 14 points on Sunday, going 4-for-8 from the field and 2-for-4 from deep.

When asked about her sudden offensive outburst, especially after early-season shooting woes, Martin stressed that she doesn’t view missed shots as "struggles."

Instead, she told reporters, "I just try to control what I can control, and tonight I made a couple of shots."

Valkyries’ Kate Martin on her career high 14 point performance tonight after some early season shooting struggles:

“I don’t count missed shots as struggles… I just try to control what I can control and tonight I made a couple of shots.” pic.twitter.com/p5xvJVTpDD
— Kenzo Fukuda (@kenzofuku) June 2, 2025

Over five seasons with the Iowa Hawkeyes, Martin registered 1,299 points, 756 rebounds and 473 assists in 163 games.

In her graduate year (2023-24), she averaged a career-high 13.1 points, 6.8 rebounds and 2.3 assists per game while leading Iowa to its second consecutive national championship game appearance.

She also became the first Hawkeye to record over 900 points, 500 rebounds, 400 assists, 120 steals and 60 blocks in a collegiate career.

Selected 18th overall by the Las Vegas Aces in the 2024 WNBA draft, Martin spent her rookie year as a reserve, averaging 2.6 points and 1.6 rebounds in 11.5 minutes per game.

Through her first five games with the Valkyries, however, Martin struggled to find consistency, averaging 4.5 points and 1.8 rebounds in 14.5 minutes per contest before her 14-point outing on Sunday.

Over the next week, Golden State will travel to face the Phoenix Mercury before returning to the Bay to host the Las Vegas Aces, Martin's former team.

This article first appeared on Athlon Sports and was syndicated with permission.

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