Golden State Valkyries Waive Kate Martin as 2026 WNBA Season Begins
She was a member of the historic inaugural roster that became the first expansion team to ever make it to the postseason. However, one year later and GSW has not found a spot for her. The Golden State Valkyries have waived Kate Martin as the 2026 WNBA season begins.
Martin was a fixture in the Bay helping to put Ballhalla and the Valkyries on the women’s professional basketball map. GSW made history not only with merch sales, ticket sales and a playoff appearance. But the organization was the first WNBA team to be valued at half a billion dollars in 2025; with many now estimating the franchise is worth one billion. Which would also make GSW the first team to achieve this milestone in women’s sports period.
The Valkyries success has been attributed to a number of factors including great branding, team name, marketing and play on the court. And it’s on the court that fans become connected to the players. Last season, Kate Martin was a franchise favorite; in fact, she’s been a heavy hitter in the league since being drafted in 2024 (the 18th overall pick by Las Vegas). Even before suiting up for Golden State, Kate enjoyed high-demand rookie sales with the Aces, where she had one of the WNBA’s top-selling jerseys.
Golden State Valkyries Waive Kate Martin as 2026 WNBA Season Begins
But despite Martin having been a top 5 jersey sales player, Golden State seems ready to be moving on from her. Nonetheless, head coach Natalie Nakase says the decision was not easy, but had to be done. She reveals,
“The special thing about Kate is, when you have a conversation with her, she makes you feel like you’re the most important person that’s in the room. And so with that said, it was obviously very hard, because, again, we’re trying to construct the best team, but for us, it is a lot of emotions.
And I think what I’m learning through being a head coach is you got to let your players sit in their emotions. You got to let them feel it. You know, you can’t just blow things off. And I’m learning that’s probably the best way we can try to continue moving on.”
Last season, Kate averaged 6.8 points a game. And this year is now dealing with an injury. At the end of the April it was confirmed that Kate Martin had been diagnosed with a grade two quad strain. Money Martin has been fun to watch; hoping she heals up fast and lands softly, somewhere soon.
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