LAS VEGAS — Of course Caitlin Clark talked trash. Kate Martin expected nothing less.

It was May 25, and the WNBA rookies − Clark of the Indiana Fever, Martin of the Las Vegas Aces − were matched against each other for the first time in their professional careers. Martin was trying to be serious. Clark wasn’t.

“Man, she’s not very good at basketball isn’t she?” Clark said to the official as he handed the ball to Martin, who suppressed a smile.

Later, it was Clark’s turn to smile. When the No. 1 pick in the 2024 WNBA draft realized she was about to guard her best friend and former Iowa teammate, she couldn’t stop grinning. A photo of the moment went viral, the latest keepsake for the midwestern natives whose love of basketball has led them on a journey no one saw coming.

That they get to experience it together makes it that much sweeter.

“It’s so rare in this league for two people from the same team to both make it, unless you go to UConn or South Carolina or something, there’s so many of them in the league,” Martin told USA TODAY Sports, with a laugh. “It’s really nice to have one of your best friends going through a similar experience. She knows exactly what I mean every time I say something; it’s hard to talk to other friends (about the WNBA) because they just don’t understand our jobs.”

The two meet again Tuesday when the Aces host the Fever (9:30 p.m. ET, ESPN).

Sometimes it’s still unreal to Martin that this is her reality now.

“I never would have thought I’d be in this position,” she said. “I always knew Caitlin was going to change the world, but I’m super grateful to be here, too.”

‘She knows how to play with superstars’

Long before her name was called in April, everyone knew Clark would make history as the No. 1 pick, perhaps the most heralded rookie to ever join the league. Martin was in the crowd to support Clark. But when her name was called in the second round − pick No. 18 overall to the two-time defending champion Aces − everyone was surprised.

Everyone except Clark.

Clark loves to gush about Martin, her roadtrip roommate when the two were at Iowa, leading the Hawkeyes to back-to-back Final Fours.

“It’s kind of rare at the pro level what she can bring to a team, but she’s one of those people that’s not gonna care if she scores points, not gonna care how many rebounds she has or how many assists she has − she’s just gonna come in and play as hard as she possibly gonna, gonna be the best teammate she can be and those are the type of people you want in your locker room,” Clark said.

But Martin’s contributions are more than just a “glue guy,” Clark emphasized.

“She makes shots, she makes 3s, she always has her feet ready,” Clark said. “From a basketball standpoint at times she could get a little overlooked. But she could do some amazing things − she can do some things I couldn’t do! Her mid-post game is really good, she has a nice little fadeaway, she has a high basketball IQ. Those are the type of players (Aces coach) Becky (Hammon) wants. I think she fits that system perfectly.”

Hammon agrees.

The two-time WNBA champion coach hoped that everyone else would be so enamored with Clark, the all-time scoring leader in the history of college basketball, that they’d overlook Martin, allowing the Aces to draft her.

“Caitlin Clark is amazing, I love watching that kid, but − you don’t take one person and put their team in the Final Four,” Hammon said. “You’ve got to have other pieces. To me, Kate was the next most important piece. She knew how to impact a game without having all the plays called for her. On this team, I’m not calling plays for Kate Martin. She knows how to play with superstars.”