Teenager Has Unforgettable Interaction With Aces' Kate Martin At Recent Game

A teenage WNBA fan had an unforgettable experience at Friday night's Las Vegas Aces game thanks to one particular rookie.

Brooklyn, 15, loves women's basketball and has been an Aces fan since day one. She was excited when the franchise drafted Kate Martin and got a unique chance to interact with her at Friday night's game.

Mercedes Martinez, Brooklyn's mom, shared her daughter's interaction with Martin in two TikTok videos. Part one showed that Brooklyn made a sign that reads, "Rock, Paper, Scissors for your Shoes?" and the video quickly went viral.

Martinez talked to The Blast exclusively to share the exciting experience.

"We are Aces fans and have been since day one! We've been to about four or five games but always watch on TV when we can. I've been lucky enough to meet most of the players through my job," she told The Blast.

"My daughter Brooklyn, not only loves the WNBA, but she loves women's college basketball, too. When the Aces drafted Kate Martin, she was excited."

Martinez's friends are season ticket holders and sold her their tickets for Friday night so she could take both her daughters. Brooklyn asked if she could get a Martin jersey at the arena, and Martinez agreed.

"As we headed to our seats, we saw a sign-making station. She asked if she could make one to welcome Kate Martin to the team," she continued. "I said she should ask her to play rock, paper, scissors to get her attention. Then she made that sign about her shoes."

The seats that Martinez and her daughters had were so close to the players on the court that nearly every Aces player high-fived Brooklyn on and off the court.

"During warmups, she yelled, 'Kate' and showed her the sign. We couldn't believe when she played,"  she told The Blast. "We laughed so hard after she won, not even caring if she got shoes. Kate Martin played rock, paper, scissors with her! That's a win for her!"

But the excitement didn't end there. After the game, Martin walked directly over to Brooklyn, so she pulled out the jersey she just bought and the two had an interaction that can be seen in the second video on TikTok.

"We will never forget what she did and I will forever be grateful to her for the joy she brought to all of us," Martinez shared. "Go Aces!"

Martinez's first video received more than 1 million views in less than a day. The second video, shared hours after the first one, has received more than 470,000 views so far.

Many viewers dropped into the comment section to share their excitement for Brooklyn's moment with Martin.

"At least she remembered, signed the jersey, and took a photo. Shoot that’s a WIN!" one viewer wrote. Another added, "I will say, she always wears those shoes so they are probably her fave. I’m happy she signed your daughter’s stuff. She’s a class act."

Another viewer pointed out, "'It’s the only pair I got,' I love her, she’s so wholesome."

At the end of the first month of the WNBA season, ESPN released its ranking of the top 9 rookies, and Martin made the list!

1. Cameron Brink, Los Angeles Sparks
2. Angel Reese, Chicago Sky
3. Kate Martin, Las Vegas Aces
4. Rickea Jackson, Los Angeles Sparks
5. Julie Vanloo, Washington Mystics
6. Caitlin Clark, Indiana Fever
7. Aaliyah Edwards, Washington Mystics
8. Sevgi Uzun, Dallas Wings
9. Leonie Fiebich, New York Liberty

According to Sports Illustrated, ESPN WNBA writer Neil Paine explained that various statistics and metrics were used to create the list. The primary three metrics used were: Win Shares, Estimated Wins Added, and Player Efficiency Rating.

"Each estimate of wins created is then averaged into a single metric, called Consensus Wins, which can be used to rank qualified rookies on a per-minute basis. (We're ranking this way to keep things fair because some teams have played nearly twice as many games as others)," Paine said.

"As an added wrinkle, we'll be grading each rookie on a percentile scale (0 to 100) relative to all WNBA players this season in their scoring (based on points per 100 possessions), true shooting percentage, passing (based on assist rate), rebounding rate and defensive impact (based on both SPR and defensive rating). That way, we can see why players rank where they do -- and what they might do to improve over the rest of their debut season."

Martin's story is a real-life Cinderella story.

She went to the WNBA Draft to support her former teammate and friend, Caitlin Clark. Martin was seated in the audience, and was approached by a woman who worked the event who told her, "You need to move seats right now."

And then a magical moment happened. Martin was selected with the No. 18 overall pick by the Aces.

The Aces rookie seems to be fitting into her new team flawlessly, based on social media posts. Martin recently celebrated her birthday and her teammates went all out! They even pranked her by making her think the bus left without her and had her running behind it.

Social media followers have taken note of how easy Martin's transition to the start of her WNBA career has been.

"New to the WNBA. Not gonna lie. But I’m so impressed with how the Aces have embraced Kate! Iowa has loved Kate for years but now we love the Aces too!" one Instagram user wrote.

Another added, "She fits perfectly on this team!"