Natasha Cloud

Cloud has been one of the better point guards in the WNBA over the last few seasons. She set a new career-high mark with 12.7 points per game in 2023 while adding 3.7 rebounds (also a career best), 6.2 assists and 1.1 steals. While the veteran shot just 37.7 percent from the floor -- her lowest mark since 2017 -- she was among the league's best free-throw shooters, knocking down 3.4 makes per game at a 90.0 percent clip. The 32-year-old suggested during the offseason that she was open to leaving the Mystics, and she signed a two-year deal with Phoenix at the beginning of February. Cloud's scoring marks have improved over the past two seasons, and she should have plenty of opportunities to rack up assists as part of a Mercury lineup that includes Brittney Griner, Diana Taurasi, Kahleah Copper and Rebecca Allen. Cloud is unlikely to be the primary option for field-goal attempts with her new club, but she'll likely continue to have enough well-rounded production to make her a solid fantasy option with top-40 upside.

Despite entering her age-30 season in 2022, Cloud emerged with the best campaign of her career, finishing with career-high outputs in points (10.7), and assists (7.0) per game while matching her best rebound total (3.6 per game). She's set to claim a similar role on the ball for the Mystics in 2023. She's expected to be joined by veteran Kristi Toliver, who indicated she intends to sign with the club this offseason, but there's little doubt Cloud will serve as the team's primary ball handler. She wasn't particularly efficient from the field (39.9 percent) or from deep (31.9 percent), so she may be primarily viewed as a facilitator in 2023, but she produces enough to warrant a mid-round pick in standard points formats.

After sitting out the 2020 season along with many of her teammates, Cloud was back in full force as a facilitator of the offense last year. She churned out 6.4 assists per game on the campaign, second to only Courtney Vandersloot's 8.6 per contest. Cloud's output as a scorer certainly has some room for improvement too. While she did finish the year with a career-best 83.6 percent conversion rate from the line, she also hit just 27.4 percent of her shots from deep after making at least 32.6 percent in each of the last two campaigns. Cloud's struggles in the scoring department highlight her biggest fantasy weakness, limiting her overall upside.