CHICAGO — Natasha Howard is a WNBA All-Star again because of course she is. The veteran of 13 seasons, three championships and two previous All-Star selections is exactly where she planned to be — an All-Star starter as one of the league’s best players on one of the league’s best teams. Sure, some people across basketball didn’t know or think the 34-year-old Howard had a season like this left in her bag. That group of people did not include Natasha Howard.
“Absolutely I do,” Howard said after a blowout win against the Dallas Wings on June 9 when asked if she felt like she was still in her prime. “I feel like I’m back home again, like I’m happy where I’m at. I’ve got the opportunity to actually show my game that everybody thought I lost last season, but I’m back, and I’m better.”
For Howard, affectionately known as ‘Tashi,’ returning to the franchise she called home for two seasons from 2016-17, where she won her first championship and played behind legendary Lynx frontcourt players like Sylvia Fowles and Rebekkah Brunson, was a mutual desire for this season shared by both herself and the architect of those 2010s championship teams.
“Just bringing Tashi home, I think she will tell you that we always thought we’d be back together at some point,” Minnesota Lynx head coach and president of basketball operations Cheryl Reeve said during her first media availability after free agency. “When she left she was a young player playing behind Brunson and Fowles. She wanted to spread her wings and boy did she. She did tremendous things. An MVP candidate, Defensive Player of the Year, really helped Seattle … The last few years I think she’s had good years, but I think there’s another level that we’d like to get her back to.”
She’s done that and then some so far in 2026, posting the best numbers of her career in field goal percentage, assists and offensive rebounding. She’s converted more 2-point field goals than anyone in the league not named A’ja Wilson, while her 51 steals rank third in the league and are a huge reason why Minnesota has feasted on points off turnovers this season. The Lynx have scored 18.7 per game, the second highest in the league behind only Atlanta.
“Grateful,” Howard said when asked about returning to her first All-Star weekend since 2022. “To be honest, you’re just taking it in and soaking every moment in with these amazing, great, talented women that are All-Stars as well. So it’s just about taking every moment in and just having fun.”
It wasn’t just Howard and Reeve who had faith in a Minnesota reunion working out for both sides. Fowles, the future hall of famer who stood between Howard and more playing time in her first go round with the Lynx, shared an offseason conversation with her former teammate about accessing the level she knew Howard was still capable of performing at.
“Tashi, that’s my baby,” Fowles said before Portland’s game against the Lynx in Minneapolis on July 18. “It’s always good to see players come back to Minnesota, especially when they’ve been here before. You get to see that transition over their career, how they started, what it was in between, and to bring it back home. For her to have the season that she’s having, I think [All-Star starter] is a no-brainer. I’m very happy for her and I’m happy that she’s looking like the old Tashi because we had a conversation about other people writing her off, how she wasn’t good enough or she’s on the down end of her career. To see her come back and flourish it’s always a great thing.”
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Howard may be deep into her career, but her focus and results insist she’s smack dab in the middle of her prime. An ambitious individual goal-setter, Howard has continued to aim for the highest of highs. Prior to her 2025 season in Indiana, she stated on media day that her individual goals were the same as always. To be a candidate for MVP and Defensive Player of the Year.
Those goals may have felt lofty in 2025, but in 2026 they’ve helped her reclaim her place as one of ten players in the league with the privilege of stepping onto the All-Star court when the game tips off. They’ve also helped put Minnesota at the top of the league standings, with an eye towards strengthening that position when the season’s second act tips off on Tuesday.
“It feels good you know, my work speaks for itself,” Howard said during WNBA All-Star Media Day on July 24. “Everybody’s seen it, everybody knows that, but I ain’t going to stop here. I’m not going to stop here right now. I’m going to still elevate, still try to get more accolades on my resume, I’m not done yet. Y’all are going to see this in the second half of the season as well, so I’m not done.”
