Who knew you can’t wear a hat on a Wgb touchline?
Natasha Cloud did not do it.
Last week, the WNBA issued a good warning to the New York Liberty Guard for a question unrelated to its play. The Cloud teammate, striker Isabelle Harrison, also received a good warning for carrying hats on the touch of New York victory on Las Vegas, said Cloud Athletics.
Cloud and Harrison did not play in the match due to injuries. Cloud wore a black baseball cap “calm before the storm”, and Harrison wore a white beret.
“If I am out of the game, I should be free to wear and express what I want within the limits of respective organizations, WNBA, etc.,” said Cloud. “My hat” calm before the storm “did nothing at the W. He did nothing in the game. It affected any part of the game in addition to my booty.”
I do not understand why I receive a nice warning for having worn a hat on the bench for a game in which I could not play?
I just feel like I want to be left alone lollzzz
– Natasha Cloud (@ t_cloud4) July 13, 2025
Cloud, a 10-year-old veteran, said that she was not aware that she could be penalized for carrying head covers on the touch of a match in which she did not appear. She said she had touched hats and had never received warnings before. Sources of the league told Athletics The rule is not new this year, although several members of other franchises said they were not aware of the policy.
“I think it is a very juvenile rule that the W should pass,” said Cloud.
Several unauthorized league sources to discuss the question publicly – fearing their own fines – echoed this feeling when they were asked about politics.
The opinions of Cloud and Harrison were not the only violation of the uniform policy warning that the league has published this season, said league sources said Athletics. According to the WNBA rules book section on driving and players’ dress, uniform political violations can involve players with jewelry or sneakers with unprecedented logos during matches.
A rule indicating that players cannot wear hats on the sidelines is not in the rules of rules accessible to the public, but it is in a manual of operations distributed in private to the teams. In recent seasons, NBA players have put on all kinds of hats on the sidelines. The Cowboy hats collection of Denver Nuggets Bruce Brown goalkeeper, in particular, has been acclaimed by several fashion points of sale.
Cloud said that the delivery of fines to WNBA players wearing a touch hats is “not conducive” to the league relationship with the players. She said that more transparency about this rule – and other rules and fines around the League – could have an impact on WNBA policies and their subsequent application.
Unlike the cases of fines in the NBA, the WNBA periodically publishes fines. The League announced that the Seattle storm had been sentenced to a fine of $ 5,000 in September for having to comply with the media policies, and the Chicago Sky, Angel Reese striker, was sentenced to a fine of $ 1,000 (and the sky of $ 5,000) for a violation of media policy last year too. However, when the Indiana White Indiana fever coach was fined for criticizing officials earlier this season, the decision was private until White mentions it at a press conference.
The fines of the coach and the players, often for having criticized the commissioner, are rarely published by the League, causing complaints concerning the transparency and inconsistency of the league towards punishment.
“I can think of at least 10 years ago that we are asking (greater transparency) during our competition meetings”, coach of Minnesota Lynx and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve recently said Athletics‘S Richard DESSCH. “The teams wanted it. The league is not for various reasons. If you are transparent on the fines and the fines have influenced someone $ 500, you perpetuate that the narrative players are not worth much. We are not paying much.”
Reeve was not sentenced to a fine after his criticism of the officer in match 5 of the WNBA final last year, a league source confirmed to Athletics.
“I think our fans probably deserve this, to see what is going on, when the fines occur, and what type of penalty or fine is made to each person or player,” said Phoenix Mercury coach Nate Tibbetts.
Cloud did not take a fine – only a warning – for having worn a hat last week, but she received a good Sunday during New York’s victory over Atlanta’s dream when she was called for her second technical fault this season.
However, her violation of head covering is at the top of the mind for her.
“I just have the impression that we are doing Nitpicky S—,” said Cloud. “I prefer that we focus on real things to try to take our money to wear what we want to wear and express ourselves.”
(Photo of Natasha Cloud: Evan Yu / NBAE via Getty Images)
