WASHINGTON — The Washington Mystics announced that Natasha Cloud has signed a multi-year contract with the team. "The crew is back together," said Cloud.
The multi-year deal for Cloud is for three years, paying her $190K the first year, $185K the second year and $190K the third year, according to someone close to the contract deal told WUSA9's Darren Haynes.
This person also said the deal will include off-season marketing money that the team will give her for a variety of projects.
Cloud, who is Washington’s all-time leader in assists (617), led the Mystics to back-to-back WNBA finals and played a huge role in helping Washington win their first WNBA title in franchise history. She opted out of the 2020 WNBA season to focus on social justice advocacy.
Opting-out meant Cloud passed on her salary and the final year of her contract with the team. Converse, one of her sponsors, ended up paying her salary in full.
Cloud, 29, lead the Washington Wizards and Mystics players in the "Together We Stand" march on Juneteenth in 2020.
"I missed my coaches. I missed everyone. I missed seeing everyone's faces and joking with people. I missed that," said Cloud. "Especially with everything that happened last summer it was hard to not have that outlet."
Now that Cloud is in D.C. for an extended period of time, she plans to work even harder in the community.
"The needle has definitely moved but the mentality is still the same as it was in 2019 when I fought for gun violence," said Cloud. "My goal is to be a champion on the court but also a champion in the community."
The 2019 season was Cloud’s best in the WNBA, as she recorded career-bests in minutes per game (32.1), points per game (9.0) and assists per game (5.6). She holds career averages of 6.3 points per game and 4.1 assists per game while recording 8.6 points per game and 4.2 assists per game in the playoffs.
“Signing Natasha to a multi-year contract is an important day for our team,” said Head Coach and General Manager Mike Thibault. “As the point guard, she is the engine that drives us — our pace on offense, the start of our defense, the energy at practice on a daily basis. Her constant quest to improve herself and our team was manifested in our march to a championship. Her passion for the game, as well as her passion for community leadership and social justice off the court, has made her an integral part of the Mystics connection with the fans and city of Washington, DC. We can’t wait to get started.”
The product of St. Joe’s University, Washington originally selected Cloud in the second round (15th overall) of the 2015 WNBA Draft.
Cloud earned numerous honors throughout her collegiate career, including Atlantic 10 Defensive Player of the Year and Atlantic 10 All-Conference First Team and All-Defensive Team selection.