Dawn Staley controversially calls out WNBA reporter over Kate Martin post
Credit: imagn images The 2026 WNBA season is almost upon us and even though the league is expanding rapidly, there are still familiar names among final roster cuts. One of those is former Iowa star Kate Martin. But a post about her fate with the Golden State Valkyries drew a surprising backlash from none other than South Carolina Gamecocks head coach Dawn Staley.
Martin has been a popular WNBA player in her time in the pros, carrying plenty of name recognition that comes with being on the successful Iowa teams with Caitlin Clark. But she was able to carve out a role both with the Las Vegas Aces and Golden State Valkyries. However, she was the final cut from the Valkyries this season.
And as laid out in a post from Matt Lively of CBS affiliate KPIX in the Bay Area, it was an agonizing call given three players were fighting for two spots. And in spite of her fan base, it was Martin that was left out in a competition with UConn alum Kaitlyn Chen and former first round pick Laeticia Amihere from South Carolina. Kate Martin is the final cut from the Valkyries.
They opt to keep Kaitlyn Chen and Laeticia Amihere over Martin. The move makes sense in terms of need but Martin is an incredibly popular player with a fan base that shows up in every city. https://t.
co/CAYu159XNZ — Matt Lively (@mattblively) May 7, 2026 As innocent as the tweet may seem, it still drew condemnation from Dawn Staley. She called out Lively for daring to use the names of other players, especially her former player in Amihere, in talking about Martin’s departure. She said it was “not cool” and said she hopes that Lively can cover the team “unbiasedly” in the future.