"Slimeee, appreciate you always": Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham and Fever stars send love to $214,466 teammate as FA decision awaits

Caitlin Clark and Sophie Cunningham were among the Fever stars who showed love to Natasha Howard for the impending free agent's emotional post. Howard, who signed a $214,466 one-year deal with Indiana, penned a gratitude-filled note on Instagram, thanking her teammates and the Fever organization for 2025.

Coming into the team as one of the marquee additions, Howard lived up to expectations and was key to the team's run to the WNBA semis. She embraced the opportunity to be the ultimate veteran for the young players and she thanked them for trusting her with the role.

Howard called it one of her best years in the WNBA. As she enters the offseason with uncertainty over her future in Indiana, Howard said that her relationships with her 15 "sisters" will remain the same throughout her life after all they went through together.

Caitlin Clark, Sophie Cunningham and several other Fever stars returned the love with heartfelt comments. Clark wrote:

"Slimeeeeee , appreciate you always 🖤"

Cunningham added:

"our tashy❤️❤️"

Aliyah Boston wrote:

"Tashh❤️❤️❤️love you babesss"

Chloe Bibby, Mikayla Timpson, Sydney Colson, Bree Hall, Brianna Turner, Aari McDonald and Aerial Powers were the other well-wishers in Natasha Howard's post's comments section.

---

Caitlin Clark and Natasha Howard never shared the floor as much

Caitlin Clark played only 13 games during the 2025 WNBA season. The Fever never really saw what their team's potential was because of Clark's injuries and other players also missing time. One tandem that could have elevated the Fever more was between Clark and Natasha Howard.

With Clark's passing and Howard's ability to slash and finish in transition, Indiana could have bothered many teams, especially in the playoffs. It remains to be seen if the Fever can retain Howard. It seems like that decision will materialize only after the new CBA is agreed on, giving the Fever and other teams a better understanding of their spending power.

For now, under the current rules, the Fever will find it difficult to re-sign Howard, especially if she doesn't take a pay cut. They have other priorities such as re-signing Kelsey Mitchell and potentially Lexie Hull, who is a restricted free agent.

While Natasha Howard was impactful, Mitchell and Hull are younger and part of the foundational core pieces alongside Caitlin Clark and Aliyah Boston.