Caitlin Clark isn’t the only Iowa Hawkeyes rookie making waves in the WNBA this season. Kate Martin has become a valuable contributor for the Las Vegas Aces as a second round pick, which is incredibly difficult in the WNBA with limited roster spots. But Martin has also become popular off the floor for the way in which she has meshed with the Aces and their fans.
That love for Martin was apparent on Tuesday night as the Aces surrounded their teammate after falling to the floor with an apparent leg injury early in the game. The entire team came out onto the floor with towels to shield Martin from any cameras in what looked to be a scary moment.
WNBA MVP and current best player in the world A’ja Wilson spoke after the game about how important it was to the team to rally around Martin in that moment in a heartwarming moment that showed the support the team has for Martin and the type of culture that has been built in Las Vegas with the Aces.
“I want to take care of my rookie no matter what,” Wilson said. “She’s one of us, she’s our sister, it’s someone that we’ll always depend on and count on.”
Wilson added why the team wanted to protect Martin not knowing what her situation might be after going down in a largely non-contact injury.
“We tried to protect her peace, her mental, and just her emotion,” she added. “Cameras just don’t give us privacy and I get it, that’s their job to get the shot. But for us it just caught on that we’re going to protect her at all cost because you never know what the internet or people may do.”
Thankfully, Martin was able to return to the bench in sweatpants later in the game, but as of this point there are no details as to the severity of their injury.