Kate Martin is thriving with the Los Angeles Sparks while playing on a developmental contract. But her tenure without a standard roster spot could soon be coming to an end, as she’s already played in 7 of her 12 allowed games as a developmental player.
The clock is ticking on Kate Martin’s developmental contract
Martin could soon be converted to a standard roster spot with the Los Angeles Sparks, as Kelsey Plum’s postgame comments indicated.
Noa Dalzell is a senior writer covering the WNBA and all of women’s basketball for Breakaway, SB Nation’s women’s sports vertical, as well as the Celtics for CelticsBlog.
The third-year guard, who was waived by the Golden State Valkyries earlier this season, hasn’t gotten a ton of run, but she’s been impactful when she’s played, averaging 3.3 points in 7.9 minutes per game, while shooting 50% from the field and 41.7% from three.
After Sunday’s 89-72 Sparks win over the Portland Fire, Kelsey Plum — the team’s best player — sang her praises.
“Love Kate Martin. Kate Martin for president!” Plum said, per John W. Davis.
Plum was asked about Martin still being on a developmental contract and insinuated she’d like to see her converted to a standard deal, though she made clear that it’s not her job to make those kinds of decisions.
“Hopefully not for long,” Plum said of Martin’s developmental contract. “You see her impact every time she goes in the game. Her energy, she makes shots, she’s super active, and we need more of Kate Martin.”
Kelsey Plum and Kate Martin have been teammates before
As a rookie, Kate Martin was on the Las Vegas Aces, where she played alongside Kelsey Plum, the Sparks’ leading scorer, and offensive engine.
Then, after being left unprotected in last year’s expansion draft, Martin was picked by the Valkyries, where she became a rotation player, averaging 6.2 points in 16.4 minutes per game.
Martin and Plums’ experience together has carried over into this season.
”I obviously have experience playing with Kate, and one of the things I love about Kate [is that] she’s always in the right spot,” Plum said Sunday. “And so that’s why you see a lot of us connecting a lot of times. She’s, like, always in the right spot. So, looking forward to playing with Kate Martin a lot more this year.”
For the Sparks to sign Martin to a standard roster spot, they’ll have to waive one of their existing 12 players.
In Sunday’s game, in which Martin tallied 8 minutes, Emma Cannon, Sania Feagin, Jihyun Park, and Ta’Niya Latson all received DNPs. One of those players could be cut if Los Angeles decided to clear a roster spot for Martin, and all four players have played fewer minutes than Martin has, despite having roster spots.
Latson and Feagin were drafted 20th and 21st overall in the 2026 draft out of South Carolina, while Cannon and Park signed as free agents.
It’s not unprecedented for a developmental contract player to be offered a standard contract spot
Already, three WNBA players have seen their developmental contracts turn into standard roster spots this season. Last month, the Portland Fire converted Frieda Buhner and Holly Winterburn from developmental to standard contracts, becoming the first WNBA franchise to do so.
And, last week, the Washington Mystics converted Alicia Florez’s development contract to a rest-of-season contract.
It’s too soon to say for certain, but Kate Martin could be next.
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