Natasha Cloud has never hidden her feelings on the court, and against the Indiana Fever on August 8, the Chicago Sky guard saw a referee become the target of her latest blunt message. Fans watching were left talking about the incident in the aftermath.
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With about 7:14 left on the clock in the fourth quarter, Cloud was assessed a technical foul. In response, while moving back to the bench, a frustrated Cloud motioned to her head with her hands at referee Agon Abazi, who is bald, and then reportedly said, “F******* bald head!”, per a post by Brickcenter on X.
The interaction was caught on camera and quickly made rounds on social media, including the post from BrickCenter on X, which amassed over 575k views. However, this wasn’t the only officiating drama that Cloud was a part of during the game.
Earlier in the game, during the third quarter, Indiana Fever superstar Caitlin Clark was assessed a technical foul for making contact with an official when running out of bounds along the baseline. Cloud had bumped Clark prior to her running into the referee. This led to Indiana head coach Stephanie White protesting, earning her a technical as well. The Clark technical was rescinded after the game upon league review.
Cloud has long been known as one of the most outspoken veterans in the league, and has no problem butting heads with the referees. This willingness to challenge them has often landed her in trouble. Back in 2024, for example, she was suspended one game after reaching the technical foul limit, and that history has made her latest reaction unsurprising to fans.
WNBA Fans React to Natasha Cloud’s Blunt Referee Dig
Fans quickly took to social media after clips of the Natasha Cloud and referee Agon Abazi sequence began making rounds. Though many serious comments questioned whether the comment could add to the WNBA’s officiating controversies, some made a few lighthearted jokes at the Sky vet’s expense.
“Kinda crazy for someone with barely any hair to say that,” one fan joked, turning her words back on her own hair.
Plenty of fans were amused by Cloud’s lack of hesitation, including one commenter who saw the moment as a classic example of her outspoken personality.
“Lmao she really said ‘f***** bald head’ with her whole chest 😭 refs don’t stand a chance with her,” their comment read.
Many were much harsher in their view of the sequence between Cloud and Abazi, who argued that it could add to the negative attention already surrounding the league.
“The WNBA has gotten a lot of bad press lately and this certainly doesn’t help their cause,” one such post read.
Another fan thought the comment deserved a stronger reaction from the ref, writing, “I’d give so many more techs after that.”
Another reaction was focused less on Cloud and more on the fans’ frustrations, as one fan wrote, “The one thing that unites WNBA fans is our hatred of the refs.”
Natasha Cloud was drafted back in 2015 by the Washington Mystics and won a championship with them in 2019. The veteran guard is averaging 10.2 points along with 3.3 rebounds and 4.8 assists per game this season for the Chicago Sky. After the Sky’s recent loss to the Indiana Fever on August 8, fans will hope that Cloud keeps her calm in the upcoming matchup against the Seattle Storm on August 10.