Natasha Cloud

Personal: Cloud was a member of the Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball's Player Executive Committee from 2022-23. She is a racial justice activist who sat out 2020 WNBA season to bring awareness to gun violence and aid the Black Lives Matter movement. She majored in communication studies at Saint Joseph’s. She would be a politician if she was not playing basketball. Cloud enjoys spending time with her dogs. Her hobbies also include word searches and trying new restaurants.

2023 Season: Cloud was a 2023 AU Pro Basketball All-Defensive Team selection who placed 13th on final leaderboard with 4,723 points. She finished 11th in the league with 1,943 stat points while compiling 180 MVP points. She garnered MVP 1 notice against Team Sims on March 10 and Team Bell on March 18. Cloud compiled a 1-2 record as a captain in Week One. She was one of nine players to wear all four jersey colors during the season. She ranked third in the league with 80 assists and fourth in the circuit in free throws made (66) and attempted (73). She also ranked fifth in the league with a .906 free throw percentage. Cloud tied for fourth with 26 steals, including a season-high four thefts against Team Mitchell on March 11. She tied for fifth by playing 528 minutes over 15 games. She averaged 14.3 points and 4.8 rebounds per game. She scored in double figures in 12-of-15 games, including a season-best 20 points against Team Bell in Week Four finale. Cloud closed the season with six consecutive double-digit scoring outputs. She posted her lone double-double of the season with 15 points and season-high 10 assists in March 24 appearance against Team Sims. She grabbed a season-high eight rebounds against Team Williams on February 24. 

2022 Season: Cloud finished second on the leaderboard with 5,919 points. She also tallied 3,109 stat points to rank second in the league and tied for second in the league with 510 MVP points. She was honored as a game MVP seven times, including three MVP 1 awards. She was a starter in all 15 games who led Athletes Unlimited Pro Basketball with 577 minutes played. She played 35 or more minutes in 12-of-15 games and led the league with 133 assists in 15 games, including a league-high 19 assists in a triple overtime loss to Team Hawkins in the season finale. She dished out 10 or more assists four times. Cloud paced her team in assists in 13-of-15 games. She also led her team in scoring four times. She tied for second in the league with five double-double efforts. She authored the first triple-double in AU Pro Basketball history on February 12 with 17 points, 10 rebounds and 10 assists against Team Harrison. She also pitched in five double-double efforts. She nearly posted her second triple-double after scoring 15 points with 10 rebounds and nine assists against Team Brown to close out Week Two. Cloud made a league-high 70 free throws and ranked second with 74 attempts. She was the sixth-best free throw shooter in the league with .946 percentage. She also shot 40.5 percent from three-point range. She ranked third in the league with 40 made three-pointers while her 84 attempts ranked fifth. She scored in double figures in 12-of-15 games, including three 30-point games. She opened the season with six straight double-digit games, including back-to-back double-double efforts. She scored 18 points with 13 assists against Team Mitchell before chipping in 19 points with 15 assists against Team Russell. Cloud erupted for 30 points on 12-of-20 shooting from the field, including a 5-for-10 effort from three-point range, with seven rebounds and eight assists in Week Two opener against Team Russell. She scored a season-high 33 points after making 10-of-24 field goal attempts in addition to going 7-for-8 at the free throw line. She also connected on 5-of-11 tries from three-point range along with seven rebounds and eight assists. She made all 16 free throws in 31-point outing against Team Brown in Week Five. She also went 12-for-12 at the charity stripe during Week Four opener against Team Harrison. 

Other Professional Experience: Cloud is an eight-year WNBA veteran who has played her entire career with the Washington Mystics after being selected with No. 15 overall pick in 2015 WNBA Draft. She owns a .381 career field goal percentage with 1,258 assists and 163 steals over 248 games, including 204 starts. She has averaged 10.0 or more points per game in four of her last five seasons. She poured in career-high 14.1 points per game while earning staring assignment in 37 games during 2023 campaign. She was a member of the 2019 WNBA Championship team who averaged 9.0 points over 34 regular season games. She also averaged 13.1 points in nine postseason outings during 2019 WNBA title run. She was a WNBA All-Defensive First Team selection after averaging league-high 7.0 assists per game during 2022 campaign. She also received WNBA All-Defensive Second Team recognition in 2019. She was a recipient of 2022 WNBA Peak Performers Award for assists who averaged career-best 10.7 points and 3.6 rebounds per contest. She claimed the 2019 WNBA Dawn Staley Community Leadership Award. She has also played in Turkey.

College Experience: Cloud was a four-year letter winner at Saint Joseph’s who earned All-Atlantic 10 honors twice. She was a three-time Atlantic 10 All-Defensive Team honoree. She tallied 1,049 points and 535 rebounds in 94 career games. She is third in program history with 582 career assists. She was named 2013-14 Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year. Cloud was also named Most Outstanding Player at 2013 Atlantic 10 Championship. She earned All-Big 5 distinction three times, including First-Team commendations as a junior and senior. She was a two-time recipient of Ellen Ryan MVP award. She owns the Saint Joseph’s single-season record with 243 assists in 2013-14. She ranked second in NCAA in assist-to-turnover ratio (7.6) during junior season. She was a two-time team captain for the Hawks.