[5] In fourth grade, Martin joined her local AAU basketball program and went on to play for the Blue Star St. Louis (now known as the Napheesa Collier Elite) throughout high school.

[9][10] In seventh grade, Martin led her basketball team to the 2012 Illinois Elementary School Association (IESA) Class 4A state championship game, losing by three points in the final.

[11] That same year, she helped her middle school volleyball team win the 2013 seventh-grade IESA Class 4A state championship in straight sets.

[20] During her sophomore year in postseason play, Martin helped Edwardsville defeat Rock Island High School in the sectional championship by holding their freshman guard, Brea Beal, pointless in the first quarter.

[27] The number-one-ranked Edwardsville team[28] finished their 2016–17 season with a 32–1 record,[27][29] reaching the Class 4A state championship final where they were upset by Geneva Community High School, losing 41–40 on a last-second shot.

[20][36] She received the 5th most votes for Illinois Miss Basketball 2018 award (losing the honor to Beal)[37] and was named to both the Associated Press and the IBCA Class 4A All-State first-teams as a senior.

[12] Martin was first recruited by NCAA Division I basketball programs during her sophomore year of high school, receiving an offer from Bradley.

[1] During her high school career, she continued to receive offers from Division I programs including DePaul, Illinois, St. Louis, and Wisconsin, among others.

[42][46] On her car ride home from her official weekend visit at Iowa, Martin called the coaching staff and verbally committed to the Hawkeyes.

"[4] In June 2018, it was announced that Martin had torn her left anterior cruciate ligament (ACL) and lateral meniscus in a collision during practice for the IBCA high school all-star game and would miss the entire 2018–19 season.

[54] During the January 3 game against Illinois, Martin broke her nose after being hit in the face by a basketball and wore a protective transparent plastic mask for six weeks.

[44][55] She broke her nose again in early February after a practice squad player "threw a beautiful bullet pass right to [her] face",[56] extending her mask use a few additional weeks.

[44][57] In her first game back without her mask, Martin posted her first career double-double for Iowa with a career-best 19 points (going 5-for-5 on three-pointers) with 11 assists and five rebounds[58] in a decisive 96–78 win over Penn State on February 18.

[84][85] On December 21, as her teammate Caitlin Clark, surpassed 2,000 career points, Martin registered a career-high 13 assists during Iowa's 92–54 win over Dartmouth.

2 Indiana (featured on ESPN's College GameDay), Martin contributed 19 points and 4 assists before Clark secured the victory with a game-winning three-point buzzer beater.

[91] She helped Iowa win their second consecutive Big Ten tournament title, handily defeating Ohio State 105–72 in the championship game.

[102] In February 2023, Martin announced her return for a sixth and final season with Iowa,[103] taking advantage of both her redshirt year and the NCAA's COVID-19 eligibility extension, and to complete her master's degree.

[104][105] In a press conference during the 2023–24 season, Caitlin Clark admitted to trying to persuade and convince Martin to return for a sixth year and went on to say, "I don't want to have to come back [and play at Iowa] if she's not here.

[109] Crossover at Kinnick set a new record attendance for women's basketball with 55,646 total attendees[110][111] and raised ~$250,000 for the University of Iowa Children's Hospital.

[126] In the first round, Iowa defeated Holy Cross 91–65 with Martin collecting a double-double of 15 points and 14 rebounds,[127] despite taking a hard hit and smacking her head against the hardwood in the first half.

[128] In the second round and her final game on home court, Martin contributed seven points and ten rebounds in a 64–54 defeat of West Virginia, putting Iowa through to the Sweet Sixteen.

[130] Martin contributed 21 points and six rebounds in the 94–87 victory over the defending champs,[131] punching Iowa's ticket to a second straight Final Four appearance and setting a program record of 33 wins in a single season.

[134][135] Martin returned in the fourth quarter unfazed, knocking down a turnaround jump shot and a driving layup in the final minutes to pull Iowa into a two-possession lead.

[138] Martin scored 16 points and collected five rebounds in her final game playing for Iowa,[139] but the Hawkeyes ultimately suffered defeat to South Carolina in an 87–75 loss and were sent home as runners-up for the second consecutive year.

[7] In February 2024, Martin was named to the Ann Meyers Drysdale USBWA Women's National Player of the Year watchlist, ultimately losing the award to her teammate Caitlin Clark.

[149] At the University of Iowa Department of Athletics' end-of-year celebration, known as the "Golden Herkys", Martin was voted by her fellow student-athletes as the "Women's Hawkeye of the Year".

She made her WNBA regular season debut on May 18, 2024, in a 89–82 home win against the Los Angeles Sparks, registering 3 points, three assists, five rebounds, and a block in 26 minutes played.

[161] On December 6, 2024, Martin was selected as the Golden State Valkyries' pick from the Las Vegas Aces' 2024 roster in the WNBA's expansion draft.

[162] On October 28, 2024, it was announced that Martin would appear and play in the inaugural 2025 season of Unrivaled, the women's 3x3 basketball league founded by Napheesa Collier and Breanna Stewart.

[183][184] Martin partnered with Athleta and their "Power of She Collective" in January 2025, joining fellow female athletes Simone Biles, Katie Ledecky, and Lexie Hull.