When you lead the league assists, every possession is a new opportunity to wow the crowd with your court vision. Natasha Cloud is happy to oblige, drawing two Washington Mystics defenders into her path off a pick-and-roll before weaving around the wall with a twisting bounce pass into the hands of a waiting teammate. Cloud’s nine dimes were two above her season average, and she complemented those with 16 points, four rebounds, two steals and two triples, helping her team prevail 83-73 over the Las Vegas Aces on August 2, 2022.

Natasha Cloud

Natasha Cloud wraps pick-and-roll dime around defender for bucket

Locked in a tight road game against one of the league’s best teams, the Washington Mystics sure were glad to have Elena Delle Donne on their side. With her team clinging to a one-point fourth-quarter lead, Delle Donne plays the hero, receiving an entry pass despite three defenders flanking her. Even with her back to the basket, the two-time MVP and six-time All-Star shows no fear in taking on all comers, rising up for a turnaround fadeaway and providing some scoreboard cushion for her battling squad. It required an overtime period, but Delle Donne helped guide the Mystics to an 87-86 victory over the Las Vegas Aces on June 25, 2022, tallying 19 points, 10 rebounds, three assists, five blocks and a pair of three-pointers.

Elena Delle Donne

Elena Delle Donne hits clutch fadeaway through contact

You only get one shot at a first impression, so better make it count! Playing in just her fifth career game after the Washington Mystics drafted her third overall, Shakira Austin rewards her team’s faith by putting her defensive aptitude on clear display, drifting into the paint for some brilliant help defense and ambushing a hopeful Dallas Wings scorer with a vicious block out of bounds. Already looking like a seasoned veteran, Austin came off the bench to score 20 points on 9-for-11 shooting, while adding eight rebounds, two assists, two blocks and a steal in Washington’s 84-68 win on May 17, 2022.

Shakira Austin

Shakira Austin slides into position and swats shot out of bounds

As one of the league’s best facilitators, Natasha Cloud can fit a basketball into just about any window. The Washington Mystics guard — who led the WNBA in assists in 2022 and has remained near the top of the leaderboard in 2023 — collected a pass from a teammate following a Phoenix Mercury miss and pushed the ball with purpose up the floor. As soon as she reached the 3-point arc, Cloud fired a laser of a bounce pass to a cutting Brittney Sykes for a driving layup. Cloud shot 7 of 11 from the field for 23 points to go with four rebounds, nine assists, three steals and two blocks as her squad secured an 84-69 triumph on July 23, 2023. 

Natasha Cloud laces transition bounce pass to flanking teammate

With a nudge from Brittney Sykes, the Washington Mystics stamped their ticket to the 2023 postseason with a little extra momentum. In a late-season game against the New York Liberty deadlocked at 88 with less than a second to play, Sykes eschewed overtime for a game-winning buzzer beater when she corralled an inbound lob from Natasha Cloud and smoothly flicked in the clutch shot while suspended in midair. Sykes’ heroics prevented the Liberty from claiming the postseason’s top seed and set up a showdown between the two squads after Washington’s thrilling 90-88 victory on September 10, 2023. Sykes produced a team-high 20 points, seven rebounds and six assists.

Brittney Sykes

Brittney Sykes converts game-winning lob to beat Liberty

When you've got wheels like Natasha Cloud, overly aggressive defenses will repeatedly pay the price. Anticipating a high-pick near midcourt, the playmaking guard punishes an opponent that dares to fight over the screen, then burns past the help trapper on her way to an acrobatic scoop reverse finish. Cloud's big and-one highlighted her 19-point, six-rebound and six-assist performance in the Washington Mystics' 78-66 victory over the Minnesota Lynx on May 8, 2022.

Natasha Cloud contorts through the paint for acrobatic bucket

The league-leading Las Vegas Aces were no match for Elena Delle Donne during a tide-turning second half. The seven-time Washington Mystics All-Star did not back down a bit when the Aces came to town as Delle Donne caught a pass from Brittney Sykes behind the 3-point arc before taking one dribble, spinning around Kelsey Plum and sinking a 15-footer with 2:24 remaining in the fourth quarter. The shot gave Washington an 11-point lead, and the Mystics outscored the reigning champions by 19 during a dominant second-half run. Delle Donne led the way with a team-high 21 points — 13 in the second half — and seven rebounds in the impressive 78-62 Washington victory on August 26, 2023.

Elena Delle Donne spins into pull-up in win over defending champs

Li Meng’s first touch of the game was a sign of good things to come for the Washington Mystics rookie. Less than two minutes into a battle against the Phoenix Mercury, Meng caught a pass behind the arc from Elena Delle Donne and immediately let it fly with a veteran’s poise. Seeing the ball hit the bottom of the net filled Meng with confidence, with the Mystics scoring the game’s first nine points and never letting up. Meng shot 5 of 12 from the field — including a solid 4 of 9 showing from downtown — for a season-high 14 points in Washington’s 88-69 victory on June 16, 2023.

Li Meng

Li Meng cashes in catch-and-shoot triple from deep

Ariel Atkins picked the perfect time for her first career double-double. With her Washington Mystics missing multiple injured starters, Atkins picked up the slack against the Indiana Fever when she beat Erica Wheeler on a second-quarter drive to her left before punctuating the possession with a running floater from the elbow. Atkins shot 8 of 13 from the field and converted 9 of 10 free throws for 26 points to go with 10 rebounds and three assists in Washington’s 96-88 victory on July 7, 2023. 

Ariel Atkins

Ariel Atkins goes for 26 and 10 on her own bobblehead night

When one of the game’s most imposing figures can just as easily put the ball on the string as bury a triple, pack your bags and shut it down. Washington Mystics center Tina Charles catches a swing pass in the corner as the shot clock ticks down, creates separation with a convincing crossover, then pulls up for a three against the Atlanta Dream on June 13, 2021.

Tina Charles

Tina Charles clears space with crossover then pulls up for corner triple

It didn't take long for Shakira Austin, the No. 3 pick in the 2022 WNBA Draft, to show the impact a player with her size, skill and speed can have on a team like the Washington Mystics. Hit with a feed from playmaker Natasha Cloud, Austin blows past a scrambling Indiana Fever defender to claim space in the paint, then nimbly lays home her first career bucket -- an and-one, at that -- in an 84-70 win on May 6, 2022.

Shakira Austin slips past defense for bucket in first WNBA contest

Can’t stop what you can’t touch. Washington Mystics forward Chamique Holdsclaw pushes the ball up the floor against the Sacramento Monarchs, sizes up a defender sprinting over to cut her off, then spins seamlessly into the paint for an acrobatic bucket on July 2, 1999. The rookie finished with 22 points, nine boards and seven assists in the contest.

Chamique Holdsclaw

Chamique Holdsclaw spins to the cup for memorable acrobatic layup

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Natasha Cloud

Elena Delle Donne

Shakira Austin

Natasha Cloud

Brittney Sykes

Natasha Cloud

Elena Delle Donne

Li Meng

Ariel Atkins

Tina Charles

Shakira Austin

Chamique Holdsclaw