Valkyries expansion draft: Kate Martin, Temi Fagbenle headline WNBA’s newest roster

Kate Martin is among the bigger names on the Golden State Valkyries’ first roster.

The Las Vegas Aces fan favorite was among the selections in Friday’s 2025 WNBA expansion draft, joined by a group of 10 other players their teams chose not to protect.

The full list of the Valkyries’ selections, as announced by golfer Michelle Wie West, rapper E-40 and NBA veteran Baron Davis:

• Iliana Rupert, Atlanta Dream

• María Conde, Chicago Sky

• Veronica Burton, Connecticut Sun

• Carla Leite, Dallas Wings

• Temi Fagbenle, Indiana Fever

• Kate Martin, Las Vegas Aces

• Stephanie Talbot, Los Angeles Sparks

• Cecilia Zandalasini, Minnesota Lynx

• Kayla Thornton, New York Liberty

• Monique Billings, Phoenix Mercury

• Julie Vanloo, Washington Mystics

The Valkyries did not select a player from the Seattle Storm. They also hold the fifth overall pick in the 2025 WNBA Draft.

The rules of the WNBA expansion draft allowed each of the league’s 12 teams to protect up to six players on their roster as of the final day of the 2024 regular season. Athletes with previous core player designations, such as DeWanna Bonner and Brittney Griner, were also ineligible to be selected. The Valkyries were then allowed to choose one unprotected player from each team.

Martin being selected means the Aces opted to not protect her, which isn’t much of a surprise given how they used her toward the end of last season. The 18th overall pick of the 2024 WNBA Draft out of Iowa was a pleasant surprise early in the season when Vegas was struggling with injuries, but her playing time plummeted as the team got healthy.

After seeing double-digit minutes in 16 of the Aces’ first 21 games, Martin cracked that threshold only twice in her final 13, also missing a chunk of time in July and August with a lower leg injury. The collegiate teammate of star Caitlin Clark saw a grand total of three minutes in the postseason.