Reader’s poll: Philadelphia’s WNBA team name

It’s a new dawn for the city: Philadelphia’s long wait for a professional women’s basketball team to come back to town is nearly over after the WNBA announced the city will be part of the league’s next round of expansion. 

Joining Cleveland and Detroit, who will get their teams ahead of Philadelphia, the City of Brotherly Love and Sisterly Affection is set to welcome back women’s basketball in 2030. 

The yet-to-be-named team, owned by Harris Blitzer Sports & Entertainment, will play in the soon-to-be renamed Wells Fargo Center. 

Unlike most sports leagues, the WNBA features several teams whose team name isn’t a plural noun and doesn’t end with the letter “s” – from the Atlanta Dream, Chicago Sky, Connecticut Sun and Indiana Fever to the Minnesota Lynx, New York Liberty, Phoenix Mercury and Seattle Storm. 

With that in mind, it only seems right to offer up team names with both a city connection and an atypical twist on the sports team.

Which is your favorite potential team name?

Freedom

The betting-favorite now that the WNBA broke the news, the Philadelphia Freedom would work on several levels. The name, a nod to the World TeamTennis team the Philadelphia Freedoms, goes hand-in-hand with the city’s place in our nation’s history – and Elton John’s tune. Not only would Billie Jean King approve, the name would also lend itself to a natural rivalry with the defending champion New York Liberty. 

Nightmare

Speaking of rivalries, the Atlanta Dream already established a link to one of Philadelphia’s most famous songs: “Dreams and Nightmares” by Meek Mill. If the Philadelphia team wants to enter the league as a heel, why not go with a name opposing a potential rival? Also, what better encapsulates the fear that Philly fans instill in opponents other than a team that brings those terrors to life?

Rage

The most obvious answer, the Philadelphia Rage was one of the eight original franchises of the American Basketball League, a women’s professional basketball league that existed from 1996 to 1998 before folding in its third season. South Carolina women’s basketball coach Dawn Staley, a Philly native, was on the team and is already atop fans’ list of potential coaches for the Philly squad. 

Revolution

Sticking with the historic angle, the Revolution is another popular name floating around social media. The Philadelphia Revolution is already being used by a couple local hockey and basketball teams, but the city and its significance to the country’s founding create a natural connection to the team name nonetheless. 

Talon

We’re going out on a limb with this last one. A play off the Birds and another nod to the city’s place in American history, the Talon would be a new take on the patriotic aspects of the Eagles and the Phillies. The image of an Eagle talon gripping a basketball is already coming together.  

Other

Have any better ideas? Let us know at editor@cityandstatepa.com