Valkyries Coach Sends Strong Message on Kate Martin

Martin was selected by Golden State in the WNBA expansion draft from the Las Vegas Aces, where she spent her rookie season after playing with Clark in college at Iowa.

From year one to year two, Martin has more than doubled her scoring average from 2.6 points per game to 6.2. She is also averaging nearly five more minutes per game.

"She was my No. 1 priority from Vegas," Nakase said. "In the expansion draft, we handpicked players that embody our culture: hard-working, mental toughness and ultra-competitive."

"Kate fits all of those," she continued. "Kate is our culture."

Martin, 25, put her skills together into two eye-catching performances off the bench this month. On June 1, she hit her career-high of 14 points in the first half against the Minnesota Lynx. 

Less than a week later, she followed up with 12 points and seven rebounds in a season-high 26 minutes as the Valkyries dismantled her former team, the Aces.

"My goal is always to make an impact and be a good teammate," Martin said. "No matter how big or small my role is, I'm doing the dang thing and trying to do it to the best of my ability."