-june IB, 1339 t
Blazer enes?
PH O TO BY
Women’s basketball appears to be headed back to Portland,
but the victory is bittersweet for Portland Power fans
by
HP
A group of
Portland
Power fans
support the
home team
in 1996
er, each city must obtain pledges for at least
5,500 season tickets by Oct. 15.
The Indiana Pacers, Miami Heat and Seat
tle Supersonics will operate the other three
expansion teams. When these four teams start
play, the total number of W NBA teams will be
16, double the number in 1997, the league’s
inaugural year.
“We had not anticipated expanding this
quickly, but the combination of the success of
the league in the first two seasons and the
strong interest expressed by NBA owners has
I* hough the demise of the American Bas-
ketball League’s Portland Power left a
gaping void for fans of women’s basket
ball, things are looking up. It’s likely
women’s basketball fans in Portland will soon
have a new team to celebrate.
The Women’s National Basketball Associa
tion announced June 7 that the league’s operat
ing committee has selected four expansion
teams to begin playing in the 2000 season, one
of which will be in Portland, operated by the
Portland Trail Blazers. To secure teams, howev-
EUGENE < LANE
GOOD FOOD
GOOD PEOPLE
GOOD FUN
See You There!
S arah S wanson and W ill O ’B ryan
convinced us that the time is right to create
new teams and new opportunities for fans to
experience our games,” WNBA President Val
Ackerman stated in a June 7 press release.
She’s also quoted as saying Portland will be
a “terrific market” for women’s basketball. She
praised the Trail Blazers for being one of the
NBA’s most successful teams in recent years,
and the Rose Garden for being an excellent
arena for staging “women’s basketball in the
way that we want it to be seen by the world.”
Ackerman further stated: “The base that’s
been laid by the Portland Power of the ABL
will help us. There is clearly an audience in
that city as demonstrated by the crowds that
the Power was able to attract.”
Promotional statements aside, some Port
land Power fans have mixed feelings about the
WNBA.
Catherine Sameh of Portland was a devoted
Power season ticket-holder. “When the ABL
went bankrupt and the Power folded, I had a
lot of strong feelings about how the NBA was
responsible for some of that demise,” says
Sameh, quickly adding, “But I really want to
support women’s basketball. If this is the only
thing around, they need our support."
The conflict stems from a commonly held
belief that the W NBA was founded only after
the ABL demonstrated a market for women’s
basketball, and that the WNBA’s association
C O U N T Y ’S
with the NBA allowed it to challenge the ABL
with major marketing muscle.
Its a theory Sandra Kite, another Power
season ticket-holder, subscribes to wholeheart
edly. “That ticks me off,” she says flatly, offer
ing that, like Sameh, she has reservations
about the W NBA.
“I haven’t decided whether I’m going to buy
tickets or not,” says Kite. Though, after mulling
a bit, Kite seems to decide— reluctantly. “I
probably will in fact buy tickets. I still want to
support women’s basketball.”
Nevertheless, Kite still takes issue with the
W NBA’s plans to play its season in the sum
mer, as opposed to a traditional winter season.
“I don’t like the idea of women playing basket
ball in the off-season just to keep basketball
fans interested in the game. That irks me,” she
says. “Having it run in the off-season makes it
seem like a second-rate game.”
Though the 2000 season doesn’t yet have a
confirmed schedule, just mentioning that a
women’s basketball team could soon exist again
in Portland has been enough to generate rev
enue at the Trail Blazers ticket office, which is
currently accepting $50 deposits from fans for
next year’s season tickets.
■ To place a deposit on W omen ’ s N ational
B asketball A ssociation tickets, call the Port
land Trail Blazers ticket office at (503) 231-8000.
8th A N N U A L
DAY
PRI
SUN. f JUNE 27
1999
Picnic
in the Park
1 1 a m ” 6:30pm
MAURIE JACOBS PARK « EUGENE
by the Foot Bridge at VALLEY RIVER CENTER
Special Guest Speaker:
Harriet Merrick
Sp eak ers from:
Men's Health Network
Lesbian Health Project
LGBT & Questioning Youth Group
Rural Organizing Project
M a n y T hanks to O u r Sp on sors:
1 WEEKLY
JU ST OUT
H IV A llia n c e
EQUALITY
PROJECT
M a rc ia O 'R o u rk e
GRAPHIC DESIGNS
DIRECTIONS:
1-5 So u th to the 1-105 Eugene Exit.
ENTERTAINMENT
Cathleen Wilder & Nicole Weiland
Jack Smith * Tess Catalano
Soromundi Lesbian Choir
Rainbow Wranglers
Invincible Vincent
Dyke Van Dyke
Bumpy
PRIDE DAY IS OPEN TO EVERYONE.
$2.00 donation is suggested.
Right onto D elta H ig h w a y .
Take the next Exit to Valley River Center.
Behind the main mall there is parking along
the tree line of the Willamette River.
Foot/bike bridge leads across to the event!
^Notice:
Promote your business!
while helping G AY PRIDE DAY!
RAFFLE Items? Donations of goods or services
ore welcome! tax deductible].
A D V E R T IS E in this years program ?
Some space is available Deadline 6/18.
FULL PAGE: 4.5* x 7.5* $50 • 1/2 PAGE:4.5’ x 3.5* $30
1/4 PAGE: 4.5* x 15" $15 (horiz] or 2" x 3.5* $15 (vertical)
Funds are for Pride Day, 2 0 0 0
PRIDE DAY is an alcohol and drug free event.
Vendors & Artists contact:PRIDE Committee • [541 ] 9 8 8 -0 3 9 9 * website: http://home.att.net/~timspfd/prideloneco/home.html
FOOD B OOT H S « C R A F T S < R A F F L E « K I D S P A C E
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