So often in its 28-year existence, the WNBA — from its players, to rules and play styles — have been told by the basketball world to take notes from the NBA.
The cliche is old, outdated and just a lazy argument used in conversations where not much knowledge of the WNBA is present.
It’s time for the NBA — more specifically New York’s biggest franchise — to take notes from its crosstown counterparts: the New York Liberty.
With the Knicks entering an offseason with some uncertainty, the front office could take some cues from the Liberty’s previous offseason moves.
The main one being the acquisition of 33-year-old, two-way guard Natasha Cloud.
Cloud, a former champion who repeatedly ranks among the top of the league in assists and defensive stats, was undoubtedly a huge addition for the Liberty.
But it’s her unwavering leadership, constant self-assertiveness and self-appointed responsibility to hold teammates accountable that has helped set the Liberty apart from the rest of the elite WNBA teams.
The Knicks — even in a year the team reached the Eastern Conference Finals for the first time in 25 years — seemed to lack that kind of leadership for the entirety of the regular season and postseason push.
The 2025 offseason goal for Leon Rose’s front office? Go get themselves a Natasha Cloud.
“We did not anticipate that Tash Cloud would be available this past offseason,” Liberty general manager Jonathan Kolb said last month. After an initial proposal with the Sun got declined, the Liberty later acquired Cloud in exchange for draft compensation from Connecticut via trade in March.
“That was a player we’ve had circled for a long time. We are always chasing some players that we’ve had interest in, and it takes a long time to acquire those players. Tash we identified some years ago for the for what she will bring, what she will bring on court for us is two-way play… I think Tash is a leader. She leads not only by example, but with her voice. Tash is a giver. I can’t even tell you, well, you’ll know when Tash is in the room and it’s a wonderful thing. She’s a true connector.”
Cloud joined the team months after the Liberty won its first-ever WNBA championship. The roster already included superstars deployed by head coach Sandy Brondello that carried the franchise past the Minnesota Lynx in a thrilling five-game WNBA Finals: two-time MVP and six-time All-Star Breanna Stewart; 2021 MVP and five-time All-Star Jonquel Jones; and three-time All-Star Sabrina Ionescu.
The team also featured a bench that ranked first in the league in plus-minus throughout the 2024 regular season.
“We have obviously our big three leading their way and Tash just kind of covers the holes where we need,” said Brondello.
Kolb knew something was missing. Staying complacent after winning a championship wasn’t an option. They needed a leader to get the team back on track when things go awry. And they needed someone willing to sacrifice for the betterment of the overall team.
“And so when you look at all of those qualities, and you look at our current roster, Tash amplifies what we already have.”
The return on Cloud’s investment showed dividends as early as training camp. From Day 1, Cloud was heard loud and clear on the Barclays Center practice court. Her addition to the roster brought in a hunger that didn’t allow the Liberty to start the season with a championship hangover.
The team started the title defense 8-0, the best start in Liberty history.
Before Cloud, there were moments the Liberty looked lost, similarly to the Knicks throughout the 2024-25 season.
Despite the firepower, the Liberty struggled with sputtering offense since the superteam formed in 2023. In the early parts of the 2024 season, second-half droughts led to losses and tight wins to teams they’ve should’ve taken care of easily. Putting together a collective 48-minute performance alluded them.
The same issue plagued the Knicks even with the additions of All-NBA center Karl-Anthony Towns and premier 3-and-D wing Mikal Bridges joining a roster that included All-Star captain Jalen Brunson and another premier wing OG Anunoby.
At times, you didn’t know what team you were getting. It could’ve been a team featuring historic offensive performances that shined in Madison Square Garden or a stagnant ball-watching group of players leaning on the heroics of Clutch Player of the Year Brunson.
There were moments during the season where Towns — a generational offensive talent who possess possibly the best three-point shot of any center in NBA history — couldn’t get involved enough. It took an 0-2 Eastern Conference deficit to the Pacers — a Game 3 performance that saw Brunson miss high-leverage minutes due to foul trouble — for the team to realize Towns went underutilized. What followed was a dominant 20-point fourth-quarter performance en route to six-point win.
Funny enough, the same issue revolved around Jones and the Liberty since her arrival to New York. Brondello’s team functions best with Jones at the No. 1 option in any offensive set. The big admitted she struggled with staying engaged in games in previous seasons with the Liberty, but that hasn’t shown much in 2025.
The difference ? There’s a clear Liberty identity. The Knicks struggled to find theirs.
It led to the Pacers to defeat the Knicks in the Eastern Conference Finals, a series where the Knicks still searched for an identity by trying a new starting lineup and new rotations far too late in the season. That too contributed to the firing of head coach Tom Thibodeau.
“Losing this game, we felt really confident coming in,” Knicks guard Miles McBride said after getting eliminated in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference Finals. “Overall this season — like I said — it felt like a lot of stuff throughout the year got exposed now.”
There’s a clear identity with Cloud running the show at point guard. They lean on defense to jumpstart quick offense. And in the halfcourt, a five-out offense with Cloud — and the rest of the Liberty’s weapons — forces opposing teams to make tough decisions on the court while defending in space.
No longer does Jones go possessions without getting the basketball. And all her touches don’t come 22 feet away from the basket.
The Liberty’s early part of the season has shown no long lapses in games.
Cloud brings intangibles that were once missing from the New York hoops teams. And she even proved to be a finisher, getting two late stops, including a strip on Indiana’s Caitlin Clark in last month’s 90-88 road win over the Fever.
“I want to be a part of that standard,” said Cloud, who entered Wednesday second in the WNBA in assists (6.9) while averaging 10.9 points, 4.1 rebounds and 1.7 steals per game. “It’s really hard to win a championship, and every piece is so important to that success. So I just want to be a part of it. That’s all I wanted to do, was add to this organization.”
Now the Knicks must find that player who can get the team over the hump. Doing so will take some creative maneuvering since the Knicks don’t have much cap space to work with entering the 2025 offseason. Leaders and impact players will be on the move with the NBA landscape destined to shift as multiple teams look to offload salary while avoiding the penalties of the second apron.
The Knicks don’t necessarily need to make a move for a big-name superstar. It may even be a deal that goes under the radar amidst the upcoming offseason frenzy.
But the goal is to find a Natasha Cloud.
Originally Published:
