Seattle Storm

Founded:

2000

Stadium:

Climate Pledge Arena

The Seattle Storm are an American professional basketball team based in Seattle, Washington, playing in the Western Conference of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded by Ginger Ackerley and her husband Barry ahead of the 2000 season. The team is currently owned by Force 10 Hoops LLC, which is composed of three Seattle businesswomen: Dawn Trudeau, Lisa Brummel, and Ginny Gilder. The Storm have qualified for the WNBA Playoffs in twelve of its seventeen years in Seattle. The franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as former UConn stars Sue Bird, Swin Cash, and Breanna Stewart; 2004 Finals MVP Betty Lennox; and Australian power forward Lauren Jackson, a three-time league MVP. In 2004, 2010, and 2018, the Storm went to the WNBA Finals; they've won every time, beating the Sun in 2004, the Dream in 2010, and the Mystics in 2018. Of the teams that have been to the Finals, the Storm are one of two who have never lost a Finals series; the defunct Houston Comets being the other. The team cultivates a fan-friendly, family environment at home games by having an all-kid dance squad, which leads young fans in a conga line on the court during time-outs, to the music of "C'mon N' Ride It (The Train)" by the Quad City DJ's. Named for the rainy weather of Seattle, the team uses many weather-related icons: the team mascot is Doppler, a maroon-furred creature with a cup anemometer on its head; the theme song for Storm home games is AC/DC's "Thunderstruck"; and its newsletter is called Stormwatch. The Storm were the sister team of the Seattle SuperSonics of the NBA prior to February 28, 2008, when the team was sold to Force 10 Hoops LLC.