Kate Martin fondly recalls Caitlin Clark's instant rise after recruitment: "She came in and ruled the world"

Kate Martin and Caitlin Clark share a close bond that started in their first year together at Iowa. They have experienced many ups and downs, including consecutive NCAA championship game losses.

They eventually got separated in the 2024 draft when the Indiana Fever drafted Clark with the No.1 pick and the Las Vegas Aces selected Martin with the 18th pick. After spending her rookie year with the Aces, Martin moved on to the Golden State Valkyries.

On Friday's edition of WNBA legend Sue Bird's "Bird's Eye View" podcast, Martin talked about her life and career. During one segment, Bird asked Martin to recall her thoughts on the first time she heard about the Hawkeyes recruiting Clark.

"I had heard about this Caitlin Clark and I was watching videos of her having like 40 points and averaging like a million in high school and I was like, 'Oh this girl thinks she is gonna come here rule the world' and there she did, came in right away and ruled the world," Martin said.

Despite playing for different teams, the bond between Clark and Martin is as strong as it has ever been. They frequently interact on social media by commenting on each other's posts and mentioning each other in their former teammates' posts.

"Sort of excellence": Kate Martin discusses Caitlin Clark's work ethic

In the same episode, Sue Bird asked Kate Martin to describe one thing that stood out to her about the 2024 WNBA Rookie of the Year's work ethic at Iowa.

"She was in the gym constantly," Martin said (Timestamp: 23:48). "The way she approached everything was like sort of excellence, it wasn't like, 'Oh I'm just gonna go through the motions and like whatever.' It was like, 'I am here to kick your b**t.'

"Every single drill, every single practice and especially when our gray squad guys were playing against us, it was like, If you're across from me, you're my enemy.'"

Martin added that Clark's dedication and mindset helped raise the Hawkeyes squad's level.

The Indiana Fever guard is out with a quadriceps injury she suffered in the 90-88 loss against the New York Liberty on May 24. Meanwhile, Martin is expected to play in the Valkyries' next game on Saturday against her former team, the Las Vegas Aces.