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The Seattle Storm are an American professional
basketball Basketball is a team sport in which two teams, most commonly of five players each, opposing one another on a rectangular Basketball court, court, compete with the primary objective of #Shooting, shooting a basketball (ball), basketball (appr ...
team based in
Seattle Seattle ( ) is a seaport city on the West Coast of the United States. It is the seat of King County, Washington. With a 2020 population of 737,015, it is the largest city in both the state of Washington and the Pacific Northwest regio ...
. The Storm competes in the
Women's National Basketball Association The Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) is an American professional basketball league. It is composed of twelve teams, all based in the United States. The league was founded on April 22, 1996, as the women's counterpart to the Natio ...
(WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was founded by Ginger Ackerley and her husband
Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...
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 sixteen of its twenty-one years in Seattle. The franchise has been home to many high-quality players such as former UConn stars
Sue Bird Suzanne Brigit Bird (born October 16, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who played her entire career with the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association ( WNBA) Bird was drafted by the Storm first over ...
, Swin Cash, and Breanna Stewart;
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
Finals MVP
Betty Lennox Betty Bernice Lennox (born December 4, 1976) is an American retired professional basketball player. She played for the Minnesota Lynx, Miami Sol, Cleveland Rockers, Seattle Storm, Atlanta Dream, Los Angeles Sparks and Tulsa Shock in the Women' ...
; and Australian power forward
Lauren Jackson Lauren Elizabeth Jackson (born 11 May 1981) is an Australian professional basketball player. The daughter of two national basketball team players, Jackson was awarded a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in 1997, when she ...
, a three-time league MVP. The Storm are four-time WNBA Champions, with victories in
2004 2004 was designated as an International Year of Rice by the United Nations, and the International Year to Commemorate the Struggle Against Slavery and its Abolition (by UNESCO). Events January * January 3 – Flash Airlines Flight 6 ...
,
2010 File:2010 Events Collage New.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2010 Chile earthquake was one of the strongest recorded in history; The Eruption of Eyjafjallajökull in Iceland disrupts air travel in Europe; A scene from the opening ceremony of ...
,
2018 File:2018 Events Collage.png, From top left, clockwise: The 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in PyeongChang, South Korea; Protests erupt following the Assassination of Jamal Khashoggi; March for Our Lives protests take place across the United ...
, and
2020 2020 was heavily defined by the COVID-19 pandemic, which led to global Social impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, social and Economic impact of the COVID-19 pandemic, economic disruption, mass cancellations and postponements of events, COVID- ...
. They are one of two teams who have never lost a WNBA Finals, the defunct
Houston Comets The Houston Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. They are one of two ...
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 AC/DC (stylised as ACϟDC) are an Australian Rock music, rock band formed in Sydney in 1973 by Scottish-born brothers Malcolm Young, Malcolm and Angus Young. Their music has been variously described as hard rock, blues rock, and Heavy metal ...
's " Thunderstruck"; and its newsletter is called ''Stormwatch''. The Storm were the sister team of the Seattle SuperSonics of the
NBA The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a professional basketball league in North America. The league is composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada) and is one of the major professional sports leagues in the United St ...
prior to February 28, 2008, when the team was sold to Force 10 Hoops LLC.


Franchise history


A gloomy start (2000–2001)

The Storm's predecessor was the Seattle Reign, a charter member of the American Basketball League (ABL), operating from
1996 File:1996 Events Collage.png, From left, clockwise: A Centennial Olympic Park bombing, bomb explodes at Centennial Olympic Park in Atlanta, set off by a radical Anti-abortion violence, anti-abortionist; The center fuel tank explodes on TWA Flight 8 ...
through December
1998 1998 was designated as the ''International Year of the Ocean''. Events January * January 6 – The '' Lunar Prospector'' spacecraft is launched into orbit around the Moon, and later finds evidence for frozen water, in soil in permanently ...
, when the league folded. Luckier than most localities that had an ABL team, Seattle was quickly awarded a WNBA franchise and began to play less than two years later. The Seattle Storm would tip off their first season (the 2000 WNBA season) in typical expansion fashion. Coached by Lin Dunn and led by guard Edna Campbell and Czech center
Kamila Vodichkova Kamilla and Kamila are feminine given names. Notable people with these names include: Kamila * Kamila Aliyeva (born 1967), Azerbaijani politician * Kamila Gasiuk-Pihowicz (born 1983), Polish politician * Kamila Valieva (born 2006), Russian figu ...
, the team finished with a 6–26 record. The low record, however, allowed the Storm to draft a 19-year-old Australian standout
Lauren Jackson Lauren Elizabeth Jackson (born 11 May 1981) is an Australian professional basketball player. The daughter of two national basketball team players, Jackson was awarded a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in 1997, when she ...
. Though Seattle did not make the playoffs in the 2001 season, Jackson's impressive rookie performance provided a solid foundation for the franchise to build on.


Sue Bird's arrival and the road to the WNBA Finals (2002–2004)

In the 2002 draft, the Storm drafted UConn star
Sue Bird Suzanne Brigit Bird (born October 16, 1980) is an American former professional basketball player who played her entire career with the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association ( WNBA) Bird was drafted by the Storm first over ...
, filling the Storm's gap at the
point guard The point guard (PG), also called the one or the point, is one of the five Basketball positions, positions in a regulation basketball game. A point guard has perhaps the most specialized role of any position. Point guards are expected to run t ...
position. With Bird's playmaking ability and Jackson's scoring and rebounding, the team made the playoffs for the first time in 2002 but were swept by the
Los Angeles Sparks The Los Angeles Sparks (LA Sparks) are an American professional basketball team based in Los Angeles. The Sparks compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as a member club of the league's Western Conference. The team was foun ...
. Coach
Anne Donovan Anne Theresa Donovan (November 1, 1961 – June 13, 2018) was an American women's basketball player and coach. From 2013 to 2015, she was the head coach of the Connecticut Sun. In her playing career, Donovan won a national championship with Ol ...
was hired for the 2003 campaign. In Donovan's first year, Jackson would win the WNBA Most Valuable Player Award, but the team had a disappointing season (with Bird injured for much of the year), and the Storm missed the playoffs. The 2004 Storm posted a then franchise-best 20–14 record. In the playoffs, the Storm made quick work of the
Minnesota Lynx The Minnesota Lynx are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team won the WNBA title in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017. Founded pr ...
, sweeping them in the first round. The Storm then squared off against an up-and-coming
Sacramento Monarchs The Sacramento Monarchs were a basketball team based in Sacramento, California. They played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 1997 until folding on November 20, 2009. They played their home games at ARCO Arena. The Mona ...
team in the West Finals. The Storm would emerge victorious, winning the series 2–1. In the
WNBA Finals The WNBA Finals are the championship series of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the conclusion of the league's postseason each fall. The series was named the WNBA Championship until 2002. Starting 2016 Verizon is the officia ...
, the Storm would finish off the season as champions, defeating the Connecticut Sun 2 games to 1.
Betty Lennox Betty Bernice Lennox (born December 4, 1976) is an American retired professional basketball player. She played for the Minnesota Lynx, Miami Sol, Cleveland Rockers, Seattle Storm, Atlanta Dream, Los Angeles Sparks and Tulsa Shock in the Women' ...
was named MVP of the Finals. The win made Anne Donovan the first female head coach in WNBA history to win the WNBA Championship.


A consistent postseason contender (2005–2009)

Key players from the Storm's championship season were not on the team in 2005. Vodichkova,
Tully Bevilaqua Tully Louise Bevilaqua (née Crook on 19 July 1972) is an Australian professional women's basketball player. She formerly played for the San Antonio Stars in the WNBA and the Perth Lynx in Australia's WNBL. The 5'7" Bevilaqua's play style is ...
, and Sheri Sam moved on to other teams. Also, the pre-season injury of Australian star and new acquisition Jessica Bibby hampered the team's 2005 season. While they matched their 2004 record and made the playoffs, the Storm's title defense was stopped in the first round by the
Houston Comets The Houston Comets were a Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) team based in Houston. Formed in 1997, the team was one of the original eight WNBA teams and won the first four championships of the league's existence. They are one of two ...
, 2 games to 1. In 2006, the Storm would finish 18–16, good enough to make the playoffs. The Storm put up a good fight in the first round against the Sparks but would fall short 2–1. In 2007, the Storm would finish .500 (17–17), good enough to make the playoffs in a weak Western Conference. The Storm would be quickly swept out of the playoffs by the
Phoenix Mercury The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the league ...
. On November 30, 2007, Anne Donovan resigned as head coach, and was replaced by Brian Agler on January 9, 2008. Although most of Seattle's major sports teams endured poor seasons during 2008, the Storm would be the only standout team in Seattle that year, posting a franchise-best 22–12 record and finishing with a 16–1 record at home, also a franchise-best. But the No. 2 seeded Storm lost to the #3 Los Angeles Sparks in the first round of the playoffs in three games and ended Seattle's season at 23–14 overall. In 2009, the Storm were 20–14 and finished second in the Western Conference for the second straight year. In the playoffs, the Storm again lost to the #3 Los Angeles Sparks in 3 games, which ended their season in the first round for the fifth consecutive season.


A second championship (2010)

In the 2010 season, the Storm was almost unstoppable with a record-tying 28 wins and 6 losses in the regular season, including a perfect 17–0 at KeyArena. This was the most home wins in the history of the WNBA. Along the way,
Lauren Jackson Lauren Elizabeth Jackson (born 11 May 1981) is an Australian professional basketball player. The daughter of two national basketball team players, Jackson was awarded a scholarship to the Australian Institute of Sport (AIS) in 1997, when she ...
was named WNBA Western Conference Player of the Week five times, and Western Conference Player of the Month three times, on her way to being named
WNBA MVP The Women's National Basketball Association Most Valuable Player (MVP) is an annual Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) award given since the league's inaugural season -- 1997. MVP voting takes place immediately following the regular s ...
for the third time. Agler was also named Coach of the Year. In the playoffs, the Storm dramatically reversed their fortunes from the previous five seasons. They started with a sweep of the Sparks, the team that previously knocked them out of the playoffs every time they met. Then they swept
Diana Taurasi Diana Lorena Taurasi (born June 11, 1982) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was drafted by Phoenix first overall in the 2004 WNBA draft. Taurasi has w ...
and the
Phoenix Mercury The Phoenix Mercury are an American professional basketball team based in Phoenix, Arizona, playing in the Western Conference (WNBA), Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded before the league ...
in the conference finals, and the
Atlanta Dream The Atlanta Dream are an American professional basketball team based in Atlanta, playing in the Eastern Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded for the 2008 WNBA season. The team is owned by real ...
in the
WNBA Finals The WNBA Finals are the championship series of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) and the conclusion of the league's postseason each fall. The series was named the WNBA Championship until 2002. Starting 2016 Verizon is the officia ...
. With two league championships, the Storm became Seattle's most successful pro sports team by that measure.


Postseason pains (2011–2014)

With the same lineup as the previous year, the Storm had much expectation for the
2011 WNBA season The 2011 WNBA season was the 15th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. The regular season began on June 3 with the Los Angeles Sparks hosting the Minnesota Lynx, featuring 2011 WNBA Draft top pick Maya Moore, in a game televise ...
. But right in the second round a two-year home invincibility was broken by the
Minnesota Lynx The Minnesota Lynx are an American professional basketball team based in Minneapolis, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team won the WNBA title in 2011, 2013, 2015, and 2017. Founded pr ...
, who even left the Storm scoreless for the first seven minutes. Injuries hit multiple players, especially Lauren Jackson, who had to undergo hip surgery and missed most of the season. The regular starting five resumed play only in the last five games, but Sue Bird and Swin Cash kept the Storm competitive, finishing second in the WNBA with 21 wins and 13 losses. On the playoffs, a Mercury
buzzer beater In basketball and other such timed sports, a buzzer beater is a shot that is taken before the game clock of a quarter, a half (if the half is the second one, then, a game), or an overtime period expires but does not go in the basket until after t ...
at the KeyArena eliminated the Storm in round 1. In 2012, with Jackson absent for the early season training with the Australia national team and injuries to most of the team, including Bird, only
Camille Little Camille Little (born January 18, 1985) is a former American professional basketball player for the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She began her WNBA career with the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2007. She played college basketball ...
and Katie Smith played on all the games of the regular season. Upon her return, Jackson missed some games due to a hamstring injury but reached 6,000 points on her WNBA career playing against the
San Antonio Silver Stars The San Antonio Stars were a professional basketball team based in San Antonio, playing in the Western Conference in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The team was founded in Salt Lake City, Utah, as the Utah Starzz before the ...
. The 16-18 record put the Storm fourth in the West, facing the Lynx, who posted the league's best record during the regular season, in the playoffs. While the Storm managed to force a game 3 by winning in the KeyArena at double overtime, a last-second attempt by Jackson went off the rim and the Lynx took the series-winning by just one point, 73-72. After losing in the first round of the 2013 playoffs to the Lynx following a .500 regular season, the Storm missed the playoffs in 2014. This was the first time the Storm missed the playoffs since 2003.


Loyd/Stewart Era, third and fourth championships (2015–present)

Following seven-year head coach & GM Brian Agler's hiring in Los Angeles, the Storm elevated President Alisha Valavanis to President & GM, and two weeks later, hired Jenny Boucek as the fourth head coach in franchise history. Valavanis and Boucek promptly got to work, trading
Shekinna Stricklen Shekinna Stricklen (born July 30, 1990) is an American basketball forward who is currently a free agent in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Born in Conway, Arkansas, she went to Morrilton High School, which she helped lead t ...
and
Camille Little Camille Little (born January 18, 1985) is a former American professional basketball player for the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She began her WNBA career with the San Antonio Silver Stars in 2007. She played college basketball ...
to the Connecticut Sun for the #3 and #15
2015 WNBA draft The 2015 WNBA draft was the league's draft for the 2015 WNBA season. The Seattle Storm picked first. This year's draft was unusual in that two players with remaining college eligibility declared for the draft—Jewell Loyd of Notre Dame, who h ...
picks, along with
Renee Montgomery Renee Danielle Montgomery (born December 2, 1986) is an American former professional basketball player, sports broadcaster and activist who is currently vice president, part-owner, and investor of the Atlanta Dream, and one of three owners of th ...
. Storm free agent
Tanisha Wright Tanisha Lovely Wright (born November 29, 1983) is an American basketball coach and former player. Wright is currently the head coach of the Atlanta Dream of the WNBA. She began her coaching career as an assistant coach at Charlotte. As a player, W ...
signed with the
New York Liberty The New York Liberty are an American professional basketball team based in the New York City borough of Brooklyn. The Liberty compete in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) as part of the league's Eastern Conference. The team was f ...
, and a month later, Valavanis shipped the #15 pick to the Mystics for Quanitra Hollingsworth and the #20 pick in the 2015 WNBA Draft. Valavanis also signed Australian forward
Abby Bishop Abby Bishop (born 29 November 1988) is an Australian professional basketball forward/center who plays for Southside Flyers of the Australian WNBL. She has played for the Australian Institute of Sport from 2005 to 2006, the Canberra Capitals fr ...
that month. Fast forward to April 2015, the month of the WNBA Draft, where Seattle now held the #1, #3, #20 and #26 picks. Days before the draft, Notre Dame guard
Jewell Loyd Jewell Loyd (born October 5, 1993) is an American professional basketball player for CB Avenida, Perfumerias Avenida of Spain's Liga Femenina de Baloncesto and the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was draft ...
and Minnesota center
Amanda Zahui B. Amanda Zahui Bazoukou (born September 8, 1993), known professionally as Amanda Zahui B., is a Swedish basketball player for the Washington Mystics of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). After playing basketball both in Sweden and c ...
shook up the draft order, both forgoing NCAA eligibility and declaring for the WNBA Draft. On April 16, 2015, Seattle drafted Jewell Loyd #1, UCONN sharpshooter
Kaleena Mosqueda-Lewis Kaleena Jordan Mosqueda-Lewis (born Kaleena Jordan Lewis, November 3, 1993) is an American professional basketball player who is currently a free agent. Prior to enrolling at the University of Connecticut she played for Mater Dei High School in S ...
#3, Vicky McIntyre #20 and Nneka Enemkpali #26 in the 2015 WNBA Draft. In the 2015 WNBA season, despite missing out on the playoffs with a 10-24 record, the number-one drafted Jewell Loyd would win the
Rookie of the Year Award A rookie is a person new to an occupation, profession, or hobby. In sports, a ''rookie'' is a professional athlete in their first season (or year). In contrast with a veteran who has experience and expertise, a rookie is usually inexperienced ...
. After having the worst record in the WNBA, the Storm ended up with the first overall pick again using it to select Breanna Stewart from the University of Connecticut. In the 2016 WNBA season, Stewart immediately emerged as one of the young rising stars in the league, winning Rookie of the Year, averaged an impressive 18.9 ppg and broke the record for most defensive rebounds in a regular season. Loyd would statistically improve, averaging 16.5 ppg, birthing a new, young dynamic tandem as the "Next Great Storm Duo" after Sue Bird and Lauren Jackson. This would lead the Storm back into playoff contention as they finished as the 6th seed with a 16-18 record under the league's new playoff format, but would lose to the Atlanta Dream in the first round elimination game. In the 2017 season, both Loyd and Stewart continued to get better and lead the Storm into playoff contention. Loyd averaged 17.7 ppg and Stewart 19.9 ppg. Stewart would become an all-star for the first time in her career and was one of two all-stars representing the Storm in the
2017 WNBA All-Star Game The 2017 WNBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game played on July 22, 2017. The Seattle Storm hosted a WNBA All-Star Game for the first time. Starters for this year's All-Star game were selected by a combination of fan, media, and pla ...
along with Sue Bird. The Storm finished as the 8th seed with a 15-19 record but would lose yet again in the first round elimination game by the Phoenix Mercury. In the 2018 season, the Storm would elevate from a mediocre playoff team to a title contender. In the offseason, they made some slight changes to the roster. They traded for Natasha Howard and drafted
Jordin Canada Jordin Elizabeth Canada (born August 11, 1995) is an American professional basketball player with the Los Angeles Sparks of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). She was selected by the Seattle Storm with the 5th overall pick in the ...
. Bird, Loyd, and Stewart were all voted into the
2018 WNBA All-Star Game The 2018 WNBA All-Star Game was an exhibition basketball game played on July 28, 2018. The Minnesota Lynx hosted the WNBA All-Star Game for the first time. Rosters Selection On June 5, the WNBA announced that 2018 would have a new roster selecti ...
, creating a "big three" on the Storm's roster. Bird also broke records in 2018 by becoming the franchise leader in scoring and the league's all-time regular-season assists leader. With Bird's leadership and the continued development of Loyd and Stewart, the Storm finished 26-8 with the number 1 seed headed into the WNBA Playoffs. They would receive a double-bye to the semi-finals. Stewart who averaged 20.0 ppg and 8.8 RPG won the 2018 Most Valuable Player award. They faced the Phoenix Mercury in the semi-finals where Stewart averaged 24.0 ppg and Loyd added 11.0 ppg. They would defeat the Mercury in a hard-fought five-game series, advancing to the WNBA Finals for the first time since 2010. In the Finals, the Storm would sweep their opponent, the Washington Mystics, winning their first championship in eight years, Stewart was named Finals MVP. Even before the season started, 2019 was a year defined by health issues for the Storm. On April 15, Stewart ruptured her Achilles tendon playing in a Euroleague game for Dynamo Kursk when she collided with Brittney Griner, putting her out for the entire 2019 season. Four days later, head coach Dan Hughes was diagnosed with a cancerous tumor in his colon; he had it removed in May and missed the entire season, with assistant Gary Kloppenburg taking over in an interim role Later that month, after the Storm finished their preseason schedule, it was announced that Bird would have to undergo knee surgery, sidelining her too for the year. With Bird out, Canada stepped into the starting point guard role, finishing 2019 third in the WNBA in assists per game (5.5) and second in steals per game (2.3). Meanwhile, without Stewart and with Loyd missing seven games with an injury of her own, Howard became the focal point of the Seattle offense, scoring a career-high 18.1 points per game. The shorthanded Storm finished the season 18-16, earning the No. 6 seed in the
2019 WNBA playoffs The 2019 WNBA Playoffs were the postseason tournament of the WNBA's 2019 season. The Washington Mystics won the team's first WNBA title in their 22 year franchise history. Format Following the WNBA regular season, the top eight teams in the ...
. Seattle won its first-round matchup against the Minnesota Lynx, 84-74, and then lost in the second round to the Los Angeles Sparks, 92-69. The
2020 WNBA season The 2020 WNBA season was the 24th season of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). The Washington Mystics were the defending champions. Planned changes to the league's schedule included an increase from 34 to 36 regular season games f ...
was atypical, played entirely inside
Bradenton, Florida Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 United States Census, 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries ...
's IMG Academy, dubbed the "wubble," the WNBA's version of the NBA's Bubble. The Storm entered the wubble with Bird and Stewart back, but without head coach Dan Hughes, whose cancer diagnosis made him a health risk. Bird missed several games with a left knee bone bruise, but came back for the playoffs, in which the Storm didn't lose a single game. The Storm closed out the top-ranked Las Vegas Aces in three games en route to their fourth championship, with Stewart again named Finals MVP. The Storm remained at Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett for the 2021 season with limited capacity due to COVID guidelines. The Storm moved to their new home at Climate Pledge Arena for the 2022 season and played their regular season game there on May 6, 2022. Sue Bird announced that she would retire at the end of the season and drew a franchise record crowd of 18,100 spectators for her last regular season game.


Name, logo and team colors

The Storm's name was chosen because of Seattle's reputation as a rainy city, as well as the aggressive nature implicit in the name. Though the team conducted an exhaustive trademark search for options, Storm was always their preferred choice. The name had once been trademarked by an amateur
soccer Association football, more commonly known as football or soccer, is a team sport played between two teams of 11 players who primarily use their feet to propel the ball around a rectangular field called a pitch. The objective of the game is ...
club, FC Seattle Storm, in the mid-1980s, but by 2000 it was free for the WNBA to take ownership. The team had planned a formal announcement, along with a presentation of the logo and official team colors, at a January 2000 gala event for the inaugural season ticket holders. However, a Miami newspaper revealed the name two weeks early while announcing all four of that season's expansion franchises.


Logo

The original logo featured a rounded, stylized silhouette of the
Space Needle The Space Needle is an observation tower in Seattle, Washington, United States. Considered to be an icon of the city, it has been designated a Seattle landmark. Located in the Lower Queen Anne neighborhood, it was built in the Seattle Center f ...
, an iconic Seattle landmark, set against the backdrop of a green storm cloud. In dynamic font and fashion, the team name stretches in an angled rise from left to right. Pointed jags meant to evoke lightning bolts streak through the team name from right to left. A basketball orbits the Space Needle through the cloud. In January 2016, the team revealed a branding update that eliminated the use of red. The team logos retained the same overall design, but used the simplified color scheme. An alternate logo, which placed the S from the Storm wordmark on a green oval, was used on the team's jerseys on and off until 2020 in place of the more complicated primary mark. In March 2021, the team released an entirely new logo and updated color scheme. The Space Needle, depicted in a new, more minimalist style, is interlinked with the ribs of a basketball and incorporates a small lightning bolt into the tower. The logo has a pointed shape, meant to evoke
Mount Rainier Mount Rainier (), indigenously known as Tahoma, Tacoma, Tacobet, or təqʷubəʔ, is a large active stratovolcano in the Cascade Range of the Pacific Northwest, located in Mount Rainier National Park about south-southeast of Seattle. With a s ...
. A sleeker modern font and the new color scheme of dark green, yellow, and bright green are used.


Team colors

Like several early WNBA teams, the Storm was owned by their NBA counterpart, the Seattle SuperSonics, and closely related to the team. Taking their cue from the Sonics' team colors at the time, known colloquially as the "wine and pine" era of the team, the Storm's original team colors were pine green, maroon red, bronze, and white. When a new ownership group led by
Starbucks Starbucks Corporation is an American multinational chain of coffeehouses and roastery reserves headquartered in Seattle, Washington. It is the world's largest coffeehouse chain. As of November 2021, the company had 33,833 stores in 80 c ...
CEO
Howard Schultz Howard D. Schultz (born July 19, 1953) is an American businessman and author who served as both chairman and CEO of Starbucks from 1986 to 2000, from 2008 to 2017, and as interim CEO since 2022. Schultz also owned the Seattle SuperSonics basket ...
purchased the Sonics and Storm in 2001, the NBA club returned to the traditional green-and-golden yellow color scheme that the team had used for its first 28 years of existence. The Storm, however, retained their colors as a way to uniquely market the team. Following another change of ownership in 2006, the team was then sold to Force 10 Hoops LLC in 2008 when the Oklahoma City interests that owned the Sonics announced intentions to relocate the NBA club to
Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
as the Thunder. Force 10 also retained the original colors. The January 2016 branding update changed the official team colors. Adopting a scheme similar to their former NBA brother team, the updated colors were thunder green, a less saturated shade than before, and lightning yellow. White and thunder gray featured as accent colors. The new 2021 design keeps the 2016–2020 colors of lightning yellow and dark thunder green, and replaces gray with the bright bolt green.


Off-court activity


2006 and 2008 sales

Following disagreements between the Basketball Club of Seattle (the former owners of the Sonics and Storm) and the city of Seattle concerning the need to renovate the KeyArena, the Seattle SuperSonics and the Seattle Storm were sold to an
Oklahoma City Oklahoma City (), officially the City of Oklahoma City, and often shortened to OKC, is the capital and largest city of the U.S. state of Oklahoma. The county seat of Oklahoma County, it ranks 20th among United States cities in population, a ...
group led by Clay Bennett on July 18, 2006. Bennett made it clear that the Sonics and Storm would move to Oklahoma City at some point after the 2007–08 NBA season, unless an arena for the Sonics was approved by Seattle leaders before October 31, 2007. During this period of uncertainty, the Storm announced that they would play their
2008 WNBA season The 2008 WNBA season was the 12th season of the Women's National Basketball Association. It was the first WNBA season with a franchise in Atlanta as the Dream were announced in late 2007. No WNBA All-Star Game was held due to the 2008 Summer Oly ...
in Seattle at KeyArena. On January 8, 2008, Bennett sold the team to a Seattle group of women called Force 10 Hoops, LLC. The sale was given unanimous approval from the WNBA Board of Governors on February 28, 2008. This kept the team in Seattle and disconnected it from the Sonics. The Sonics moved to Oklahoma City in July, during the WNBA season.


Uniform sponsor

On April 21, 2010, the Storm and the WNBA announced a sponsor agreement with Bing, a
search engine A search engine is a software system designed to carry out web searches. They search the World Wide Web in a systematic way for particular information specified in a textual web search query. The search results are generally presented in a ...
from
Microsoft Microsoft Corporation is an American multinational technology corporation producing computer software, consumer electronics, personal computers, and related services headquartered at the Microsoft Redmond campus located in Redmond, Washing ...
, to place the company's logo on their jerseys for the 2010 season. The Bing sponsorship ended after the 2013 season, and the Storm played without a sponsor for two seasons, before signing a new uniform deal with Swedish Medical Center for the 2016 season.


Championship ring for President

In June 2011, President of the United States
Barack Obama Barack Hussein Obama II ( ; born August 4, 1961) is an American politician who served as the 44th president of the United States from 2009 to 2017. A member of the Democratic Party, Obama was the first African-American president of the U ...
invited the 2010 WNBA champion Seattle Storm to the White House. He stated that the franchise provided a good example for young girls with big dreams. He praised the Storm for the community service they perform and stated that being champions did not end when they step off the court. The Storm presented the President with a championship ring.


Temporary move to the University of Washington

With
Climate Pledge Arena Climate Pledge Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is located north of Downtown Seattle in the entertainment complex known as Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, for which it was or ...
to be closed during its renovation into a venue suitable for the
Seattle Kraken The Seattle Kraken are a professional ice hockey team based in Seattle. The Kraken compete in the National Hockey League (NHL) as a member of the Pacific Division in the Western Conference and began play during the league's 2021–22 season. ...
of the
National Hockey League The National Hockey League (NHL; french: Ligue nationale de hockey—LNH, ) is a professional ice hockey league in North America comprising 32 teams—25 in the United States and 7 in Canada. It is considered to be the top ranked professional ...
, the Storm were forced to seek a temporary venue for their 2019 season. After considering two suburban venues,
ShoWare Center The accesso ShoWare Center is a multi-purpose arena in Kent, Washington, United States. About the venue The construction of the arena began September 2005, with the venue opening in January 2009. The principal tenants are the Seattle Thunderbi ...
in
Kent Kent is a county in South East England and one of the home counties. It borders Greater London to the north-west, Surrey to the west and East Sussex to the south-west, and Essex to the north across the estuary of the River Thames; it faces ...
and Angel of the Winds Arena in Everett, the team announced in August 2018 that its primary home in 2019 would be in the city of Seattle at the
University of Washington The University of Washington (UW, simply Washington, or informally U-Dub) is a public research university in Seattle, Washington. Founded in 1861, Washington is one of the oldest universities on the West Coast; it was established in Seattle a ...
's Alaska Airlines Arena. While the arena was the Storm's primary home during the renovation, there was no guarantee of its availability for Storm playoff games, and some home games were planned to be played at other venues in the region, such as Tacoma Dome, if necessary. Since Washington's arena lacks air conditioning, and the WNBA requires that all games be played in air-conditioned venues, portable air conditioning units were used during Storm games. The team later announced that five of its 17 regular-season home games in 2019, including the home opener, would be at Angel of the Winds Arena. The 2020 season saw the Storm play their games in
Bradenton, FL Bradenton ( ) is a city in and the county seat of Manatee County, Florida, United States. As of the 2020 census, the city's population is 55,698. History Late 18th and early 19th centuries A settlement established by Maroons or escaped sl ...
.


Amazon Prime Video deal

In 2022, Amazon Prime Video announced a landmark new deal with the Seattle Storm, becoming the official streaming service of the Storm, and one of the first streamers to hold local broadcast rights with a WNBA team. Approximately 30 Storm games will be available to Prime Video customers throughout Washington state.


Season-by-season records


Players


Current roster


Former players


Retired numbers


Coaches and staff


Owners

*
Barry Barry may refer to: People and fictional characters * Barry (name), including lists of people with the given name, nickname or surname, as well as fictional characters with the given name * Dancing Barry, stage name of Barry Richards (born c. 19 ...
and
Ginger Ackerley Ginger (''Zingiber officinale'') is a flowering plant whose rhizome, ginger root or ginger, is widely used as a spice and a folk medicine. It is a herbaceous perennial which grows annual pseudostems (false stems made of the rolled bases of lea ...
, owners of the Seattle SuperSonics (2000–2001) *
Howard Schultz Howard D. Schultz (born July 19, 1953) is an American businessman and author who served as both chairman and CEO of Starbucks from 1986 to 2000, from 2008 to 2017, and as interim CEO since 2022. Schultz also owned the Seattle SuperSonics basket ...
, owner of the Seattle SuperSonics (2001–2006) * Clay Bennett, owner of the Seattle SuperSonics (2007) *Force 10 Hoops LLC, composed of
Dawn Trudeau Dawn is the time that marks the beginning of twilight before sunrise. It is recognized by the appearance of indirect sunlight being scattered in Earth's atmosphere, when the centre of the Sun's disc has reached 18° below the observer's hori ...
, Lisa Brummel, Ginny Gilder (2008–present)


Head coaches


General managers

* Lin Dunn (2000–2002) * Billy McKinney (2002–2003) *
Karen Bryant Karen Bryant (born August 24, 1967) is the Chief Administrative Officer and General Manager of the Los Angeles Sparks of the WNBA. Before joining the Sparks, Bryant started her professional sports career in the American Basketball League from 19 ...
(2004–2010) * Brian Agler (2011–2014) *Alisha Valavanis (2015–2021) *
Talisa Rhea Talisa Rhea (born July 7, 1989) is an American basketball executive who is the General Manager of the Seattle Storm of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA). Rhea began her career with Seattle in 2015 as a video coordinator, then dir ...
(2021–present)


Assistant Coaches

* Kathy Anderson (2000–2001) * Missy Bequette (2000–2001) *
Carrie Graf Carrie Ann Graf (born 23 June 1967) is an Australian basketball coach. She competed in the WNBL as a player starting during 1983–1989, after which she attended RMIT. Graf has coached teams in the WNBL, WNBA and Australia's national team, an ...
(2002) *
Gary Kloppenburg Gary Robert Kloppenburg (born January 6, 1953) is an American basketball coach. Early life and college career Kloppenburg was born in 1953, when his father Bob Kloppenburg was head coach at Lindsay High School in Lindsay, California. When Bob Klo ...
(2002; 2017-2019, 2021) * Jenny Boucek (2003–2005, 2011) *
Jessie Kenlaw Jessie Kenlaw (born July 3, 1953) worked in collegiate and professional women's basketball between the 1970s to 2000s. After playing a year of collegiate basketball with Savannah State University, Kenlaw started playing professional basketball with ...
(2003–2006) * Heidi VanDerveer (2006–2007) * Shelley Patterson (2007–2009) * Nancy Darsch (2008–2013) * Shaquala Williams (2014) * Rob Fodor (2015) * Ryan Webb (2015–2017; 2021) * Leah Drury (2016) * Crystal Robinson (2018) * Noelle Quinn (2019-2020) * Perry Huang (2021–Present) * Pokey Chatman (2022–Present) * Ebony Hoffman (2022–Present)


Records and statistics


Season records


Regular season attendance

* A sellout for a basketball game at
Climate Pledge Arena Climate Pledge Arena is a multi-purpose indoor arena in Seattle, Washington, United States. It is located north of Downtown Seattle in the entertainment complex known as Seattle Center, the site of the 1962 World's Fair, for which it was or ...
is 18,100. For Storm games, reaching capacity of the lower bowl (13,500) is considered a sellout. * A sellout for a basketball game at the team's main home during the renovation of Climate Pledge Arena, Alaska Airlines Arena, is 10,000. A sellout at the team's secondary home, Angel of the Winds Arena, is 8,500.


All-Stars

*2000: None *2001: Lauren Jackson *2002: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson *2003: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson *2004: Sue Bird *2005: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson *2006: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson *2007: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson *2008: No All-Star Game *2009: Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Lauren Jackson *2010: Sue Bird, Swin Cash, Lauren Jackson *2011: Sue Bird, Swin Cash *2012: No All-Star Game *2013: Tina Thompson *2014: Sue Bird *2015: Sue Bird *2016: No All-Star Game *2017: Sue Bird, Breanna Stewart *2018: Sue Bird, Jewell Loyd, Breanna Stewart *2019: Jewell Loyd, Natasha Howard *2020: No All-Star Game *2021: Sue Bird, Jewell Loyd, Breanna Stewart *2022: Sue Bird, Jewell Loyd, Breanna Stewart


Olympians

*2004: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson (Australia women's national basketball team, AUS) *2008: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson (AUS), Kelly Santos (Brazil women's national basketball team, BRA) *2012: Sue Bird, Lauren Jackson (AUS) *2016: Sue Bird, Breanna Stewart, Ramu Tokashiki (Japan women's national basketball team, JPN) *2020: Sue Bird, Jewell Loyd, Breanna Stewart, Stephanie Talbot (Australia women's national basketball team, AUS), Ezi Magbegor (Australia women's national basketball team, AUS)


Honors and awards

*2002 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Sue Bird *2003 ''Most Valuable Player'': Lauren Jackson *2003 ''Peak Performer (Scoring)'': Lauren Jackson *2003 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Sue Bird *2003 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2004 ''Finals MVP'': Betty Lennox *2004 ''Peak Performer (Scoring)'': Lauren Jackson *2004 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Sue Bird *2004 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2005 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Sue Bird *2005 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2005 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Lauren Jackson *2006 ''All-Decade Team'': Sue Bird *2006 ''All-Decade Team'': Lauren Jackson *2006 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2007 ''Most Valuable Player'': Lauren Jackson *2007 ''Defensive Player of the Year'': Lauren Jackson *2007 ''Peak Performer (Scoring)'': Lauren Jackson *2007 ''Peak Performer (Rebounds)'': Lauren Jackson *2007 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2007 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2008 ''All-WNBA Second Team'': Sue Bird *2008 ''All-WNBA Second Team'': Lauren Jackson *2008 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Lauren Jackson *2009 ''All-Star Game MVP'': Swin Cash *2009 ''Peak Performer (Assists)'': Sue Bird *2009 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2009 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2009 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Tanisha Wright *2010 ''Most Valuable Player'': Lauren Jackson *2010 ''Finals MVP'': Lauren Jackson *2010 ''Coach of the Year'': Brian Agler *2010 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Lauren Jackson *2010 ''All-WNBA Second Team'': Sue Bird *2010 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Tanisha Wright *2010 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Lauren Jackson *2011 ''All-Star Game MVP'': Swin Cash *2011 ''Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award'': Sue Bird *2011 ''All-WNBA Second Team'': Sue Bird *2011 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Tanisha Wright *2011 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Swin Cash *2013 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Tanisha Wright *2015 ''July Rookie of the Month'': Jewell Loyd *2015 ''Rookie of the Year'': Jewell Loyd *2015 ''All-Rookie Team'': Jewell Loyd *2015 ''All-Rookie Team'': Ramu Tokashiki *2016 ''Rookie of the Year'': Breanna Stewart *2016 ''Peak Performer (Assists)'': Sue Bird *2016 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Breanna Stewart *2016 ''All-Rookie Team'': Breanna Stewart *2017 ''Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award'': Sue Bird *2018 ''Most Valuable Player'': Breanna Stewart *2018 ''Most Improved Player'': Natasha Howard *2018 ''Kim Perrot Sportsmanship Award'': Sue Bird *2018 ''Finals MVP'': Breanna Stewart *2018 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Breanna Stewart *2018 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Natasha Howard *2019 ''Defensive Player of the Year'': Natasha Howard *2019 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Natasha Howard *2019 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Jordin Canada *2019 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Alysha Clark *2020 ''Finals MVP'': Breanna Stewart *2020 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Breanna Stewart *2020 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Alysha Clark *2020 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Breanna Stewart *2021 ''Commissioner's Cup MVP'': Breanna Stewart *2021 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Breanna Stewart *2021 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Jewell Loyd *2021 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Breanna Stewart *2022 ''All-WNBA First Team'': Breanna Stewart *2022 ''Peak Performer: Points'': Breanna Stewart *2022 ''All-Defensive First Team'': Breanna Stewart *2022 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Gabby Williams *2022 ''All-Defensive Second Team'': Ezi Magbegor


Media coverage

Currently, most Storm home games are broadcast on Sports on Prime Video, Amazon Prime. Broadcasters for the Storm games are Dick Fain and Elise Woodward. All games are broadcast to the WNBA LiveAccess game feeds on the league website. Furthermore, some Storm games are broadcast nationally on ESPN, WNBA on ESPN, ESPN2, CBS, CBS Sports Network and NBA on ABC#WNBA on ABC, ABC. The WNBA has reached an eight-year agreement with ESPN, which will pay rights fees to the Storm, as well as other teams in the league.


Notes


References


External links

* {{Authority control Seattle Storm, Women's National Basketball Association teams Sports in Seattle Basketball teams established in 2000 Basketball teams in Washington (state)