The Portland Trail Blazers weren’t always the only professional basketball team in the city.
From 2000-02, the Portland Fire was the sister franchise of the Blazers, playing in the summer when the NBA was in its offseason.
The Fire struggled in its first two seasons, missing the playoffs with a losing record but in 2002, the team reached the .500 mark. Unfortunately, it wasn’t enough for the team to make the playoffs.
Following the season, the league sold its franchises back to the NBA counterparts, and chairman Paul Allen did not want to take on any more financial losses than he was already experiencing.