History of the Fire

The Portland Fire was a professional women's basketball team that played in the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA) from 2000 to 2002. The franchise was founded by John Nash, owner of the NBA’s Portland Trail Blazers, and it was one of two expansion teams added to the league for its third season. The Fire won their first game against Los Angeles Sparks on June 10th, 2000, and finished with an overall record of 18-42 in their first two seasons combined.

The team had some notable players, such as Jackie Stiles, who led all rookies in scoring during her rookie season with 13 points per game; she also holds multiple NCAA records for most points scored throughout her college career at Southwest Missouri State University. Other memorable players include Rita Williams, who averaged 11 points per game over three seasons with Portland, and former All-Star guard Ticha Penicheiro who averaged 8 assists per contest while playing for them between 2001 -2002 before being traded away midseason due to financial difficulties faced by the organization at that time.

Despite having some talented individuals on the roster, lack of success on the court meant that attendance figures were not high enough, which eventually resulted in the franchise folding after just three years since inception despite making playoffs once during this period when they lost Conference Finals series against eventual champions Los Angeles Sparks 2–1 back in 2002. Although short-lived, the legacy left behind by this team will be remembered fondly amongst sports fans from the Pacific Northwest region forever as it gave many young female athletes a chance to showcase their skills live, nationally televised games across the United States, allowing them to pursue their dreams of becoming professional basketball player like never before!