New York Liberty’s Natasha Cloud says Philly could use ‘a little sisterly love’

NEW YORK — When Natasha Cloud transferred back home to St. Joseph’s from Maryland in 2011, the Broomall native said coaches told her that her “WNBA dreams will never become a reality. You’re making the wrong decision.”

Now, 10 years into her professional career, Cloud, who won a WNBA title in 2019 with the Washington Mystics, plays for the reigning champs, the New York Liberty. The former Cardinal O’Hara star was thrilled by last week’s announcement that Philadelphia will field a WNBA team, something the 33-year-old point guard has sought for years.

“Philly, in itself, loves sports,” Cloud said Sunday before the Liberty’s 79-70 loss to the Seattle Storm at the Barclays Center. “It’s a basketball realm, too. But for all the young girls, young boys out there, I think that women [playing] in the city really bring a nurturing spirit, a healing spirit, in a lot of ways, but still that competitiveness.”

Cloud is averaging 10.1 points and 6.2 assists for the Liberty (12-6), who are in first place in the Eastern Conference.

The team in Philadelphia will become the WNBA’s 18th franchise and begin play in 2030, following Portland and Toronto in 2026, Cleveland in 2028, and Detroit in 2029. Adding five teams in five years will increase the amount of roster spots for players and impact the job market and economics of each city.

“The proof is in the pudding with the [Golden State] Valkyries,” Cloud said of the WNBA’s newest franchise, which already is valued at a WNBA-record-breaking $500 million by Sportico, a sports business website.

“The Valkyries really blew things out the water. It really just made a precedent that if you invest and do it the right way, we’ll always bring back what you want.”

Cloud also has strong beliefs regarding politics. She sat out the 2020 “Wubble” season to focus on social justice advocacy and the Black Lives Matter movement. Now, in her first year living in Brooklyn, she’s getting involved in local politics in a new environment and publicly backing New York mayoral candidate Zohran Mamdani. She played for the Phoenix Mercury last year after eight seasons with the Mystics.

» READ MORE: How the WNBA coming to Philly could inspire girls’ basketball players

“I feel really empowered being here in New York,” Cloud said. “New York is my type of activism: We’re very much chill, but when we see things that aren’t right, we call it out.

“I’m just really excited to be here,” she added, “but also to be a voice of the voiceless in a lot of areas that affect the city of New York.”

She’s an advocate for her fellow athletes, too. Cloud was an alternate players’ union representative in Phoenix, and although she isn’t one in New York, she and many other players are getting involved in the process as the union seeks a new contract. WNBA players opted out of their collective bargaining agreement with the league last year, and the current deal expires in October.

Nneka Ogwumike of the Storm is the players’ union president and has been leading an executive team of six players, including Liberty star Breanna Stewart, through the negotiation process.

“This is a really special moment, but it’s a very pivotal moment for our league as well,” Cloud said. “This is our time to stand on business and really just get paid our dues, obviously from a financial aspect, but also from like other parts of what we need, too.”

In 2026, Cloud will be one of more than 100 WNBA free agents. She said she doesn’t know what’s next as the league expands, but she wants to play as long as possible and finish her playing career in New York.

“If I come back to Philly, it would be to probably coach or [work in the] front office,” she said.

“I know Philly is the City of Brotherly Love, but I think it could use a little sisterly love right now, too.”

» READ MORE: Before Philadelphia had a WNBA franchise, it had the Rage. Their former players are celebrating a full-circle moment.