Esmery Martinez doesn’t need to be told that when you have your shot, take it and make your presence be known.
She did that during her college career at Arizona; and she’s already doing that in the WNBA, seeing her first action in the New York Liberty’s preseason matchup Tuesday night with the Chicago Sky.
On April 15, Martinez became the first Dominican-born player drafted in the WNBA. She was selected by the Liberty as the 17th pick of the draft — the fifth pick of the second round.
This has been her goal all along, since she came to the United States from the Dominican Republic at 17 years old.
“I am proud of myself,” Martinez said in a call with the Star.
“It means a lot and that’s why I’m here. I want (the little boys and girls at home) to have an opportunity and one day see they can have an opportunity the same way I did. I know it’s not easy but we have to keep pushing. Nothing is easy in life.”
Martinez
Martinez often impacts the game just by stepping on the court. At Arizona she was active on offense and defense. She finished her final year at the UA as the only active NCAA Division I player with 1,500 points, 1,200 rebounds, 200 assists, 200 steals and 100 blocks in a career.
In that WNBA debut Tuesday night, Martinez kept that up, hitting every statistical category except blocks; she finished with four points, two defensive rebounds, two assists and two steals.
She didn’t get into the action until the second quarter, but she made it count by knocking down a three and pulling down a defensive rebound. She added 11 minutes in the second half and was communicating with her teammates on where they were supposed to be in certain sets.
Martinez did her thing; that’s exactly the advice she got from Arizona coach Adia Barnes before she left for New York.
“She told me just to be me, don’t be nervous. Be focused, do the little details and be aggressive every time out there — go have fun with that,” Martinez said.
On Thursday, she gets to do it all again in the Liberty’s final preseason game. This time against now-former Wildcat teammate, Helena Pueyo and the Connecticut Sun. The game is televised on YouTube at 4 p.m.
Pueyo was selected by the Sun in the second round as the 22nd pick. This will be Pueyo’s professional debut.
Martinez said that things in the WNBA are new, especially the pace at which they move the ball. The other difference is that she’s been playing every position in practice.
In college, while Martinez may have guarded every position, she mainly played in the post as a four. This past season, she added the three position because she said that she knew as a professional she would have to switch as she wasn’t as big as most who played in the post at the next level.
With the Liberty, however, playing in every spot means Martinez is learning the actions of every position on the floor for each set of the scheme. Not an easy task for anyone. Martinez said she is having fun, while her coach Sandy Brondello said that “versatility at this level is going to take her a long way.”
Liberty teammate Breanna Stewart added that Martinez’ “biggest comfort coming into his camp was her defense and her ability to guard multiple positions.”
This defense is exactly what attracted Brondello to Martinez in the first place. From watching her college games, Brondello saw Martinez’ knack for knowing where the ball is coming off the rim, how to lock down her opponent and her toughness.
“Defensively, she just loves that part of the ball and she’s actually probably better than what I actually thought she was, to be quite honest,” Brondello said. “She just really competes. She can guard one through four — even into the five. She has basketball IQ and positioning, but a lot of it it’s just hard work and really competing at a high level. And this is just going to get better and better.
“This is the best league in the world. So, it’s just going to be a lot of different challenges and different players that you have to guard but I think that the mindset that she brings in. The love for that side of the ball, I think, that’s going to certainly help her in this next level, but she’s actually quite a solid offensive player, as well.”
Martinez is working hard to make the opening day roster and she said it helps that she feels the support of the large Dominican population in New York; some attended the team’s open practice and waved the flag of their homeland.
And despite taking in this new fanbase, there will always be a special place in her heart for her Wildcat family.
“Thank you for everything,” Martinez said. “Thank you for giving me as much love that I had. I love Tucson; I love the way that they treated me.”
