Professional sports are always better when there are rivalries involved. One of the more common instances that gives rise to rivalries is a player facing their old team. One such rivalry is brewing between the New York Liberty and the Phoenix Mercury. The reason? Natasha Cloud is up against her former team, the Phoenix Mercury. After playing the previous season with the Phoenix Mercury, Natasha Cloud was unexpectedly traded to the Connecticut Sun. However, knowing that the Sun is in full rebuild mode, she requested a trade. Her request was granted as she joined the defending champions New York Liberty.

While trades are normal in the league and even the players who the business, but this time around, things were different. This time around, the player being traded was an All-Defense Second Team selection. What’s even worse, Natasha Cloud was hurt. Not because she was traded, but because she got to know about the trade via social media. And now, in game one of their first round match, she was the best player on the floor. Her performances made all of us wonder if there’s some extra motivation for her. However, when asked about the same, Liberty head coach Sandy Brondello was as clueless as any normal fan.

Asked if facing her old team was the motivation for Natasha’s incredible performance, Sandy said, “Yeah, I mean, it’s a question you probably have to ask her. I’m sure it did. I mean, she’s been this is her old team, but look, she’s with the New York Liberty now, and I think that was just she knows what she needs to do to come out to help us win. And, you know, she was massive tonight at both ends of the floor. She had to guard Copper (Kahleah Copper) down the other end, but she made some really timely shots and she controlled the game for us.”

In her previous three meetings against her former team, she had averaged just 11.5 points per game. However, when the lights were brightest and the playoff pressure was here, she had a dominant 23-point performance to lead the New York Liberty to a 76-69 OT win. What’s even worse for the Phoenix Mercury is that this performance came at their home court. This is significant as not only was it the perfect payback, but it also nullifies Mercury’s home-court advantage.

While we await any comments from Natasha Cloud about the same, the fact that she was hurt by the trade certainly makes it clear that there was indeed some extra motivation in last night’s game. With the win, the task for the New York Liberty on a mission to repeat is a little easier, at least for the first round. Now, they just have to make sure that they are able to win at home to progress to the next round. Meanwhile, with their season on the line, it would be interesting to see how the Phoenix Mercury respond to this new challenge.

How does Natasha Cloud’s performance help the New York Liberty in the long run?

The New York Liberty started the 2025 WNBA season in very high spirits. Coming into the season as the defending champions and with the majority of their roster intact, the expectation was for them to go ahead and repeat. And for the first half of the season, everything seemed to go to plan. They started the season by winning 8 straight games. At the halfway stage, they were one of the best teams in the league with a 15-6 record.

However, the second half of the season was troubling to say the least. Once tipped to contest with the Minnesota Lynx for the top seed, they couldn’t even secure the home court advantage. For the most part, the reason for this downturn was the injuries. Having already missed Jonquel Jones for a long time, Breanna Stewart and Sabrina Ionescu also suffered injuries. However, after ending the season with three straight wins, they carried momentum into the playoffs.

And now, thanks to Natasha Cloud’s monster game, they are closer than ever to making it to the second round. In a game where Sabrina Ionescu and Jonquel Jones struggled to find a rhythm, Natasha Cloud’s performance helped release some pressure for their next game. Without home court advantage, had they lost last night, their game at home would have had the pressure of a must-win game. But, now, it doesn’t have to be.

Don’t get me wrong, the Liberty would like to (and want to) finish the series at home. But even if they don’t, they will get another crack at eliminating the Phoenix Mercury. Her performance also gives confidence that she can still be relied upon to be a scorer when other stars are having an off night. With all that said, it would be interesting to see whether the Liberty handle business at their home court or will have to face a win-or-go-home game in Phoenix.