Las Vegas Aces rookie Kate Martin continued to deliver for her team off the bench and WNBA fans are steadily noticing and giving her props for it.
The 18th overall pick in this year’s WNBA Draft played solid for the two-time defending champions Aces in their 80-66 road victory over the Minnesota Lynx on Wednesday. She finished with nine points, all from beyond the arc, three rebounds and two assists in 21 minutes to complement the team’s stars, notably A’ja Wilson.WNBA fans praised Martin for another stellar showing, taking to X (formerly Twitter) to express their thoughts.
Below are what some of them wrote:
@wade_dolphin moved to highlight how Martin has done a good job in translating her steady backstopping job for Caitlin Clark back in college in lowa to now in the WNBA with league superstar Wilson, writing:
‘Kate Martin went from being the perfect complement to the best player in women’s college basketball to being a great complement to the best player in the world (in a span of about two months).”
Former player Steve Jones Jr. (@stevejones20), for his part, shared highlights of Martin’s play against the Lynx and said:
“Nice work from Kate Martin, solid for the Aces…”It was the same route that Las Vegas-area sports reporter Paloma Villicana (@PalomaFOX5News) took in giving props not only to Martin but fellow lowa Hawkeye Megan Gustafson, writing:
“The Hawkeyes took over the 2nd quarter in Minnesota. Kate Martin and Megan Gustafson bringing a spark off the bench tonight…”
The Athletic’s Jemele Hill (@jemelehill) underscored the great job of Las Vegas in selecting the former lowa star in the draft, writing:
“I absolutely loved that the Aces drafted Kate Martin. Just a solid player that does so many of the little things well.”She was seconded by X user GunnyRuss (@JonnyRuss4), who said:
“Steal of the draft right there!”There were others, meanwhile, who pointed out how Martin landed in a great situation in Las Vegas, where she can continue to grow as a player.
USA Today’s Meghan L. Hall (@ItsMeghanLHall) wrote:
“Every time the Aces show Kate Martin, she looks like she’s having the time of her life. I love this for her.”Still another from @wbbfanatic:
“Kate Martin landed in the perfect situation with the perfect team. No other WNBA team would’ve given her these minutes let alone a roster spot…”The Aces improved to a 4-1 record with the victory over the Lynx on Wednesday.
Wilson led the way with a double-double of 29 points and 15 rebounds, to go along with four blocks, three assists and two steals, in 33 minutes. Jackie Young, too, had a double-double of 19 points and 10 assists.
Kate Martin happy to have earned a roster spot with the Aces
When she was selected by the Las Vegas Aces in the second round of this year’s WNBA Draft, Kate Martin was still not sure of landing a roster spot in the already-loaded team. And when she learned that she did, she was just happy and Selected in the second round and 18th overall by the Aces, Martin was just one of four second-rounders this season to make the team that selected them. The others were her Aces teammate Dyaisha Fair, Seattle’s Nika Muhl and Indiana’s Celeste Taylor.
She said of the feeling of making the team, by way of the Associated Press:
“I was so excited. I felt like a lot of hard work is paying off … I was really proud of myself and really happy that I gave myself the opportunity to make the team and be alongside some great teammates.”Martin has played in four of the Aces’ five games so far, averaging six points, 4.3 rebounds and 1.5 assists in 21 minutes per game.
