Kate Martin Bio
Kate Marie Martin (born June 5, 2000) is an American professional basketball player for the Golden State Valkyries of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) and for the Breeze of Unrivaled. She played college basketball for the Iowa Hawkeyes, where she captained the program for four seasons alongside two-time national player of the year Caitlin Clark. Martin helped lead Iowa to two consecutive national championship game appearances and was selected in the second round (18th overall) by the Las Vegas Aces in the 2024 WNBA draft.
Known affectionately as “The Glue” by Hawkeyes head coach Lisa Bluder, Martin earned a reputation as a steady leader, a high-IQ defender, and a reliable three-point shooter. After one season in Las Vegas, she was selected by the Golden State Valkyries in the league’s 2024 expansion draft and continues to build her early professional resume.
Early Life and Background
Kate Marie Martin was born on June 5, 2000, in Edwardsville, Illinois, and grew up in the nearby communities of Granite City and Edwardsville. She is the youngest of three children born to teachers Matt and Jill Martin, and she started playing basketball at age five through local recreational leagues and pickup games at the YMCA. Her father, Matt, was one of her first coaches, leading her and her siblings’ basketball teams through the seventh grade.
From elementary school onward, Martin attended University of Iowa women’s basketball camps every summer, keeping an Iowa basketball poster above her childhood bed. She also played boys’ tackle football in elementary school and later took up volleyball. By fourth grade, she had joined her local Amateur Athletic Union (AAU) program and went on to play for Blue Star St. Louis (now known as the Napheesa Collier Elite) throughout high school.
Martin’s family is filled with former college athletes. Her father played college football at Western Illinois University, her older sister Kennedy played basketball at Truman State, and her older brother Trevor also competed in college sports. Her maternal aunt, Julie Fitzpatrick, is married to Iowa head coach Jan Jensen, and several other aunts and uncles played college basketball or football at schools including Drake, St. Ambrose, and Western Illinois. Martin completed her bachelor’s degree in sports and recreation management at the University of Iowa in May 2022 and later began a Master of Arts degree in the same field, with public aspirations of coaching at the collegiate level.
Path to Basketball
Martin played four years of varsity basketball for Edwardsville High School under head coach Lori Blade, joining the varsity team as a freshman and becoming a guaranteed starter for her final three seasons. She also played four years of varsity volleyball as an outside hitter, setting a school record for career block assists (194) and earning All-Southwestern Conference first-team honors as a senior.
As a junior, Martin surpassed 1,000 career points and led the number-one-ranked Edwardsville team to a 32-1 record and a Class 4A state championship final, where they were upset 41-40 by Geneva Community High School. As a senior, she averaged 16.2 points, 5.9 rebounds, 2.9 assists, and 2.1 steals per game, leading Edwardsville to a 30-2 record and a fourth consecutive Southwestern Conference title. She finished her high school career with 1,518 points, the fourth-most in program history.
Martin was first recruited by NCAA Division I programs during her sophomore year, receiving an offer from Bradley, and later drew interest from DePaul, Illinois, St. Louis, and Wisconsin. During her junior year, she was recruited by Iowa as a shooting guard and small forward, and she verbally committed to the Hawkeyes on her car ride home from an official visit. She signed her national letter of intent in November 2017 on a full athletic scholarship, and by the end of her high school career she was ranked as a three-star recruit with an ESPN scouting grade of 90.
Kate Martin Career
Early Career (2019–2022)
Martin made her collegiate debut on November 7, 2019, in an 85-53 win over Florida Atlantic, playing in 24 games off the bench as a freshman. After three Iowa starters graduated, she moved into the starting lineup as a sophomore and started all 30 games alongside incoming freshman Caitlin Clark, averaging 7.0 points and 4.3 rebounds per game with 110 assists. She also broke her nose twice during the season and wore a protective mask for several weeks.
As a junior in 2021-22, Martin started all 32 games and helped Iowa win a share of the Big Ten regular season title and the 2022 Big Ten tournament championship. She averaged 12.3 points, 6.7 rebounds, and 6.3 assists during Big Ten tournament play and was named Iowa’s Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honoree for the second consecutive year. Following a June 2018 ACL and lateral meniscus tear that forced her to redshirt the 2018-19 season, she returned with an extra year of eligibility.
Senior and Graduate Years at Iowa (2022–2024)
As a senior in 2022-23, Martin started all 38 games and helped Iowa win a second straight Big Ten tournament title. She posted a career-high 20 points in a November 2022 win over UConn, going 6-for-6 from beyond the arc, and led Iowa to its first women’s basketball national championship game in program history after an upset of defending champion South Carolina in the Final Four. Iowa fell to LSU, 102-85, in the title game, but the season cemented Martin’s reputation as a clutch performer on the biggest stage.
Martin returned for a sixth and final graduate season in 2023-24, averaging 13.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, and 2.3 assists per game with a career-high 50.7% field goal percentage. She led Iowa to a third straight Big Ten tournament title, scored a career-high 25 points in a win over Drake, and surpassed 1,000 career points in a January 2024 game against Indiana. She capped her career by leading Iowa back to the national championship game, where the Hawkeyes fell 87-75 to undefeated South Carolina. Martin finished her career at Iowa with 1,299 points, 756 rebounds, and 473 assists in 163 games, and was voted “Women’s Hawkeye of the Year” by her fellow student-athletes.
WNBA Career (2024–Present)
Martin declared for the 2024 WNBA draft and was selected in the second round as the 18th overall pick by the Las Vegas Aces, signing her rookie scale contract on April 22, 2024. She made her WNBA regular-season debut on May 18, 2024, against the Los Angeles Sparks, registering 3 points, 5 rebounds, 3 assists, and a block in 26 minutes. She earned her first career start on June 9, 2024, scoring 13 points in a loss to the Sparks, and went on to appear in 34 games during her rookie season while also playing briefly in the playoffs.
On December 6, 2024, Martin was selected by the Golden State Valkyries from the Aces’ roster in the WNBA’s expansion draft. She recorded a career-high 21 points, including 14 in the final quarter, in a narrow three-point loss to the New York Liberty on June 25, 2025. She also competed in the inaugural 2025 Unrivaled season with Laces BC before being drafted by Breeze BC for the 2026 season.
Driving Style and Strengths
Martin is widely regarded as a high-IQ role player whose value extends well beyond traditional box score statistics. Her coach at Iowa, Lisa Bluder, repeatedly called her “The Glue” of the Hawkeyes for her leadership, defensive communication, and ability to hold teammates accountable. She is a career 40% three-point shooter at the collegiate level, a willing and effective screener, and a trusted late-game decision-maker who has hit several momentum-swinging threes in NCAA tournament play.
Notable Events and Milestones
Martin’s signature moment came in the 2024 Big Ten tournament title game, when she drained two late three-pointers to force overtime against Nebraska and two more in the extra period to seal the championship. She also became the first player in Iowa women’s basketball history with 900+ points, 500+ rebounds, 400+ assists, 120+ steals, and 60+ blocks, and started 139 consecutive games alongside Caitlin Clark, the longest such streak in NCAA Division I women’s basketball in 25 years.
Kate Martin Career Wins
Kate Martin’s competitive résumé features two NCAA Final Four appearances, two national championship game appearances, three Big Ten tournament titles, and a Big Ten regular season championship. She also captured multiple IESA state championships in middle school and an undefeated eighth-grade season, while her high school team at Edwardsville compiled a 122-6 record during her four varsity years.
Iowa Hawkeyes Highlights
Across her six seasons in Iowa City, Martin helped the Hawkeyes reach the 2023 and 2024 national championship games, won three consecutive Big Ten tournament titles (2022, 2023, 2024), and reached the Final Four twice. She was a second-team All-Big Ten selection in 2024, a four-time Big Ten Sportsmanship Award honoree, and the 2024 “Women’s Hawkeye of the Year.”
Other Wins and Performances
Beyond her Iowa résumé, Martin was a state champion in middle school volleyball and posted a 28-0 record in eighth-grade basketball, capturing the IESA Class 4A state title. She also played on the inaugural 2025 Unrivaled season with Laces BC and was drafted by Breeze BC for the 2026 Unrivaled season, and was named to the Women’s Basketball Coaches Association’s 2024 “So You Want To Be A Coach” class.
Kate Martin Family
Family Background and Basketball Lineage
Martin was raised by teachers Matt and Jill Martin in Edwardsville, Illinois, in a household steeped in athletics. Her father played college football at Western Illinois University, and her older sister Kennedy played basketball at Truman State. Several aunts and uncles are former college athletes, and her maternal aunt, Julie Fitzpatrick, is married to longtime Iowa head coach Jan Jensen.
Personal Life
Martin completed both her bachelor’s and master’s degrees in sports and recreation management at the University of Iowa, and she has publicly expressed her aspiration to coach at the collegiate level after her playing career. She grew up in the same Edwardsville, Illinois, community as NFL defensive end A. J. Epenesa, whose father was coached by Martin’s father. Martin is represented by Excel Sports Management and has signed endorsement deals with American Eagle Outfitters, Athleta, Samsung, and TOGETHXR, among others.
2025 Season Performance
Kate Martin’s 2025 season marked her debut with the expansion-era Golden State Valkyries after being selected from the Las Vegas Aces in the WNBA’s 2024 expansion draft. She opened the campaign as a rotation player for the new franchise and quickly delivered one of the most memorable scoring performances of her early career, posting a then-career-high 21 points, including 14 in the final quarter, in a narrow three-point loss to the New York Liberty on June 25, 2025.
During the WNBA offseason, Martin played in the inaugural 2025 Unrivaled season as a member of Laces BC, sharpening her three-on-three game in the women’s professional league founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart. She continued her off-court growth through endorsement partnerships with Athleta and Samsung, joining a roster of fellow female athletes in those campaigns.
Looking ahead, Martin was selected by Breeze BC in November 2025 for the 2026 Unrivaled season, signaling her continued status as a sought-after professional. With the Valkyries establishing their identity as a WNBA expansion franchise and Martin pushing for an expanded scoring role, her 2025-26 outlook blends individual development with a chance to help anchor a new team’s foundation.