This is the week the Seattle Storm arrive in Everett.
The reigning WBNA champions have been forced out of their permanent home for two years as their previous home, KeyArena, is demolished and replaced by a new arena. This year the Storm are playing home games at two locations, one of them being Everett’s Angel of the Winds Arena. Seattle is playing one preseason game and five regular season games at Angel of the Winds, and the preseason game is Wednesday at 7 p.m. Their floor has been shipped up from Seattle and is in the process of being installed.
The Storm playing in Everett means we’ll be graced with some of the best women’s basketball in the world. Seattle won the WNBA title convincingly last season, finishing with the league’s best record during the regular season and sweeping the Washington Mystics in the best-of-five WNBA championship series. The team features perhaps the greatest point guard in women’s basketball history in Sue Bird, WNBA all-star guard Jewell Lloyd, interior stalwart Natasha Howard and others.
We’ll also get to witness the celebrations from winning last year’s championship. The Storm are holding their banner raising and ring ceremony prior to their season opener, which just so happens to be on May 25 at Angel of the Winds.
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Unfortunately, the Storm won’t be featuring WNBA MVP Brianna Stewart, who suffered a torn Achilles while playing in Europe and will miss the 2019 WNBA season. I’ve written about my excitement about the Storm coming to Everett, but disappointment that Stewart won’t be a part of it.
Now I want to gauge your excitement.
When talking to Storm general manager Alisha Valavanis on Sunday, she said the team has been well received by the Everett community. She said there was strong attendance at the meet-and-greet event the team held with coach Dan Hughes at Scuttlebutt Brewing two weeks ago, and she said there’s been strong ticket sales to fans from the Everett area, particularly when it comes to group sales and the five-game Angel of the Winds package.
The agreement between the Storm and Angel of the Winds Arena is only for this season. Valavanis said whether the Storm come back next year will be revisited after seeing how things go with games in Everett this year.
So what say you? What is your excitement level about the Storm playing games in Everett this season? Voice your opinion here:
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