Kate Martin gives heartfelt two-word shoutout to MIP Veronica Burton

Golden State Valkyries guard Veronica Burton clinched the 2025 WNBA Most Improved Player award on Monday. Congratulatory messages poured in for the 5-foot-9 point guard as fans, players and pundits acknowledged Burton's breakout season. Valkyries guard Kate Martin was among the many who showed love to Burton for her latest achievement.

Soon after the former Dallas Wings guard was announced as the winner of the Most Improved Player award, Martin shared a post on her Instagram story. The Valkyries sharpshooter reposted the announcement highlighting Burton's MIP honor and penned a heartfelt two-word shoutout.

"Let's gooooooo," Martin wrote.

Credit: Kate Martin/Instagram)

Veronica Burton almost won the award by unanimous decision. Out of 72 votes from a national panel of sportswriters and broadcasters, the Valkyries point guard received an astounding 68 votes. Truth be told, there was never any doubt about who deserved to win the highly coveted honor - it had to be Burton.

Numbers never lie, and Burton's stats were staggering. She averaged career highs of 11.9 points, 4.4 rebounds, 6.0 assists and 1.1 steals while starting in all 44 games. She also recorded six games with at least 20 points and eight games with at least 10 assists, after having zero such games before the 2025 season.

Kate Martin and Veronica Burton struggle in Game 1 vs. Lynx

Veronica Burton played a huge role in helping the Golden State Valkyries reach the playoffs in just their first season in the league. Kate Martin, who came off the bench for most of the season, complemented Burton and the other starters perfectly.

Despite their success in the regular season, the Valkyries were matched up against the No. 1 seed Minnesota Lynx in the first round of the playoffs.

Game 1 saw the Valkyries get blown out by the Lynx, with both Burton and Martin enduring a rough shooting night. Burton scored 14 points on 3 of 13 shooting, while Martin added 11 points on 2 of 7 shooting.

Golden State is now in a do-or-die situation and needs a victory in Game 2 to keep its season alive. The onus will be on Burton to lead the team’s charge when they take the floor at the Chase Center on Wednesday.

Edited by Atishay Jain