Kate Martin is currently playing in Unrivaled alongside Valkyries teammate Tiffany Hayes. Her performance in the league has been solid so far — she's currently averaging averaging 7.8 points, 5.2 rebounds, and 1.2 steals per game — and Martin herself has made it clear she's been enjoying her time in Miami.
Before she joined the Valkyries, Martin spent her rookie season with the Las Vegas Aces. And before that, she was part of the same team that spawned Caitlin Clark from the University of Iowa.
Martin's former coach Jan Jensen (who is also her aunt by marriage) looked back on Martin's time at the school in and interview shared by the school's reporter Blake Hornstein on Wednesday.
Kate Martin: The Glue, and the American Dream
— Blake Hornstein (@BlakeHornTV) February 19, 2025
Jan Jensen says everything that made Martin an elite role player is what's helping her succeed in the pros
"To see her become a star on the WNBA level, although she was a role player, I loved everything about that story..." pic.twitter.com/jWb890M1dh
Jan Jensen says Kate Martin is a killer
Like a lot of students, the athletes in Iowa's program "kind of pick a player they either kind of want to be, or wish they were, or that they identify as 'I am her,'" Jensen said. "I think Kate was one of those players. The way she played and her humility, but also her grit, and that little glisten in her eye — that confidence, it just resonated."
"To see her become a star on the WNBA level, although she was a role player, I loved everything about that story," Jensen continued. "Because that's life. A lot of times, if you keep plugging away, and, you know, maybe you're not always the one with the corner office, right? But you're the one that makes that organization work, and then if given the chance — Kate is gonna kill you, right?"
"I mean, when we played UConn last year, her little Dirk moves with the fade, her defense, and you know, in the pros when she got some minutes early ... people were really connecting with her."
Jan Jensen has known Kate Martin most of her life
Jensen has a close relationship with Martin that extends beyond anything on the court — she's also Martin's aunt. After admitting she's "biased," Jensen added that Martin is "the greatest young woman."
"She's my spouse's biological niece," Jensen continued. "When she was five, she'd stay with us. But she had a dream — she put her our poster above her a bed in a room looked up at the Hawkeyes poster." Once Martin was "good enough to be recruited," Jensen said she removed herself from the process and asked former Head Coach Lisa Bluder to fly down and check Martin out.
Of course, what happened next is Hawkeyes — and WNBA — history, and Martin appears set to carve out a strong career in women's basketball for herself.