Kate Martin lands with Sparks after being waived by Valkyries

Kate Martin has found a new landing spot. The third-year guard is joining the Los Angeles Sparks, three days after getting waived by the Golden State Valkyries.

Golden State announced that Martin had been waived on Thursday, shortly before announcing its official 13-player roster for 2026. Martin appeared to have just missed the cut.

Martin, who originally drafted by the Las Vegas Aces in 2024, was picked by the Valkyries in the expansion draft last year. She only started four games for Golden State in 2025, but was a key player off the bench, playing in 42 games and averaging 6.2 points per game across limited minutes.

Notably, Martin appears to have been waived in favor of second-year guard Kaitlyn Chen, who took a meandering path to the Valkyries’ 2026 final roster. Chen was unexpectedly drafted by Golden State last year in the third round, was waived before the start of the regular season and then was last June.