Vanja Černivec Wants You to Underestimate the Fire

📍PORTLAND, Ore. — Vanja Černivec fully couldn't enjoy the first official game for the team she built.

Saturday night was as big for her as it was for everybody else: Portland's first WNBA game in 24 years, and the first on-court glimpse of the Fire roster she put together in her first offseason as general manager, on the heels of helping to build a very successful expansion team in Golden State last year.

For such a momentous day, a lot of Černivec's extended family came in to Portland from her native Slovenia, including her 13-year-old nephew, who came down with chicken pox during the 14-hour flight.

"That was my preoccupation the whole day," she said that evening, speaking with reporters ahead of the Fire's inaugural season-opening loss to the Chicago Sky. "That was a very far flight for him now to not be able to come to the game, so I feel sad for him."

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That was about the only downer of the Fire's introduction to the world that, despite the loss, was an across-the-board success. In front of a sold-out Moda Center crowd, the Fire battled back from a 13-point halftime deficit and displayed the outline of a team that's at the very least going to be a tough out most nights.

That was what most people thought was the best-case scenario for the Valkyries heading into last season, too. And then they made the playoffs, scraping together a truly cohesive identity out of a collection of disparate parts under head coach Natalie Nakase.

Most expansion teams consist of cast-offs from other teams and players that haven't gotten a real opportunity yet. Černivec and Valkyries GM Ohemaa Nyanin got lucky with a few of those swings. Kayla Thornton became a first-time All-Star after 10 years in the league. Veronica Burton won Most Improved Player upon becoming a full-time starter for the first time in her career. A pair of French stretch bigs, Iliana Rupert (the older sister of former Trail Blazer Rayan Rupert) and Janelle Salaün, took massive shooting leaps.

That's a lot for Černivec's second expansion team to live up to, and not many people think she can do it twice. Portland was dead last in preseason power rankings on ESPN, The Athletic, CBS Sports and USA Today. ESPN and CBS Sports also published rankings of the best players in the WNBA heading into the season, and neither list included a single Fire player.

Černivec loves this. She's glad the team she's built is being underestimated.