'%20x='0'%20y='0'%20height='100%25'%20width='100%25'%20%0A%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20%20xlink%3Ahref='data:image/jpg;base64,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'%3E%3C/image%3E%3C/svg%3E)
Former Iowa Hawkeye Kate Martin expected her professional basketball journey to end with Division I. However, when she appeared at the WNBA draft to support Caitlin Clark, she was selected as the 18th pick by the Las Vegas Aces.
Now, when she appeared on Jada Gyamfi's Fresh Tawk podcast less than a month after her selection, she had a heartfelt reaction to being called a former Hawkeye player.
"With me today I have Kate Martin, former Iowa Hawkeye," Gyamfi introduced Martin.
"Oh, that's weird to hear," Martin replied.
"Former Iowa Hawkeye, former teammate, former love of my life," Gyamfi extended the joke. (0:00:14)
Trending
Kate Martin spent 5 years with the Hawkeyes, playing 163 games and producing 8.0 points, 4.6 rebounds and 2.9 assists on 46.4% shooting.
Martin saw less than nine minutes of action in her first year with the program but soon found a staple starting role in the rerun next season. While she briefly improved her game in the next three years, her climb to the WNBA scouts came in her last season.
Kate Martin opted into her COVID-eligible year to churn out averages of 13.1 points, 6.8 rebounds, 2.3 assists, 0.9 steals and 0.5 blocks while making 50.7% of her shots.
Kate Martin is coming off an injury
The WNBA sparked a mid-season break in light of the ongoing 2024 Paris Olympics, resulting in players across the league getting a good dose of personal time.
However, for Martin, those ventures ended when she suffered an injury in her last game before the break. Initially described as an Achilles tear, she was relegated to a bruised Achilles tendon, which nearly took a month to heal and rehab.
The Aces resume WNBA basketball on August 18 against the New York Liberty. It is unsure whether Martin will participate in the game. Nevertheless, the mid-season break makes her return a possibility between the season or the playoffs.
Martin is averaging 3.6 points, 2.0 rebounds and 1.2 in her rookie year while shooting 39.6% from the three-point line.
Dawn Staley, Geno Auriemma, or Kim Mulkey - who is NCAAW's highest-paid coach? Find out here
