Natasha Howard: I'm Going Back to Where I Started

I’ve just announced that I’m going back to where it all started and will be playing for Indiana. Mentally, I’m good. I’m happy. I have an amazing family on both sides, my wife and my side of the family and I’m just really grateful that I have the opportunity to still play basketball because a lot of people don’t have the option to play the game that they love. I’m happy that I’m able to still play and still enjoy the game that I love.

I was drafted by the Fever in 2014 as the No. 5 pick. Looking back, I would tell my younger self to just keep working because that’s what got you here. Don’t take no shortcuts. And I’m really proud of you for being patient and having an open mind. Way to stick to, way to hold yourself together when it came to tough situations.

Back then, I got to play with the legendary Tamika Catchings, and I still remember what she’d tell me, even as a rookie: “Do everything game-like, because when you do everything game-like, it’s going to be easy in the game.” I still carry that with me, and everything that I do, I just go hard. If you half a– something, excuse my language, you’re going to do that in the game. So, my mindset is don’t cut yourself short because the next person will be waiting to take your spot.

My time spent in Dallas was cool. It was something different for me because I’m so used to playing in arenas, so coming to Dallas was completely different. Don’t get me wrong, people got to start where they do, but playing in a college arena, not even having your own locker room, was completely different. My first season was fine and I am grateful for everything in Dallas.

Now, going into my 12th season in the WNBA, I know what I’m about. During Free Agency, I was looking for a team that would appreciate me and what I bring to the table and won’t dim my light. That’s the thing: I have to deal with that a lot. Even though I bust my butt day in and day out, I still don’t get the recognition that I deserve. I feel like, this time around, I wanted a team that will give me the recognition that I need and, on top of that, just making sure that I’m happy. I want to wake up, like, Woo, I feel good! Today I’m going to work, I’m about to be with my teammates. I don’t want to be dragging out of bed, trying to find that energy. Overall, I really just want to be happy, have great people around me and teammates that want to work and get better.

When people first meet me, we click right away. I’ve had people tell me, Tash you’re cool, but on the basketball court, I thought you was an a-hole. It might seem that way because on the court, we’re in-between the lines. There’s a difference. When I’m on that court, like, nah, we ain’t cool. We ain’t buddy buddy. You the enemy. You on the other side. But off the court I’m goofy, I’m myself. I’m a hard worker, too, and whatever I have going on off the court, I leave it there. I don’t bring it to work. When I told Kelsey Mitchell happy birthday, she was like, “Thank you so much. You are a one of a kind in this League. That’s the reason why you and I are cool.” I really appreciated that because I never really hear other players say anything about me. That really touched my heart.

Right now, I just want to get better every day and add something new to my game every day. Be more consistent on just shooting the ball better because this past season, I didn’t really shoot the three ball that much. I want to keep elevating my game the best way I can so my career can last longer, but also just being present in the moment and having fun. I don’t know when I’m going to hang it up, so I want to just take every moment and take it day by day. Don’t rush nothing. I’m just going with the flow. I don’t really have any goals set for myself this year besides the team though. My focus is winning a championship and getting my fourth ring. That’d be lovely.

To do that takes dedication and hard work. You can’t take days off if you’re trying to be on the mountain. That’s one thing that I didn’t do when I won those three championships: I didn’t take days off. I didn’t care how many minutes I played, if I played five minutes, I’m going hard in those five minutes. Those three championships didn’t come easy at all, we battled injuries left and right, like when Lindsay Whalen was playing with a broken hand. When we won in 2018, Sue Bird broke her nose. It was a freak accident.

I just want to just keep working hard, do the things that I would do when I got those championships and bring it to the next team. I look at my rings and I’m like, I need another one. I was showing them to my son, I’m like, this is what it takes if you want to get one of these. It takes hard work.