Storm sponsor 3on3 team to help U.S. qualify for Olympics

NEW YORK — Alexis Peterson and her Force 10 teammates see themselves as the “Founding Mothers.”

They are the first group of women to be sponsored by a WNBA team to play 3on3 basketball. They hope it’s just the beginning.

The Seattle Storm ownership group put together a pilot program with Peterson, Cierra Burdick, Linnae Harper and Megan Huff to travel the country and play in USA Basketball Red Bull 3x3 Tournaments. By doing so, the team will earn points for the U.S. to help them qualify for the 2020 Olympics. It will also earn the four players on the Force 10 team points to potentially qualify them to Tokyo next summer to play in those games.

“I think it’s amazing. First group of women to do it at this level,” Peterson said. “It’s not often you can say you are a part of something at the beginning. We were a part of that. Ten, 20 years from now, we can say we were the ones who started that and we were the ones who led the way and got women more of a chance to play.”

The Storm ownership group of Lisa Brummel, Ginny Gilder and Dawn Trudeau began researching the possibility of fielding a team about a year ago. Force 10 CEO and Storm general manager Alisha Valavanis said it was a nobrainer for them to get involved.

“We wanted to start something and it is an investment in this sport,” Valavanis said. “Not only for these players, but for the game to grow, the business of basketball to grow. That is what this is about. We received the WNBA’s support in this pilot program.”

The Force 10 players were honored to be chosen and definitely are inspired by the fact that the team was started by women.

“There’s something really special that the first team is being sponsored by a WNBA team that is owned by women,” Burdick said.

Valavanis sees the possibility that teams across the WNBA could sponsor 3on3 teams. Right now, there are 144 potential roster spots on WNBA teams. If each team were to sponsor a 3on3 team, that would add another 48 potential jobs for women.

“Absolutely, we test this and grow a model that makes sense for the WNBA and other teams to follow,” she said.

The Force 10 program also helps USA Basketball. Unlike 5on5, where teams like the U.S. can just choose from its pool of players to put forth a very good team, the Americans first must earn enough points to qualify as a country for the Olympics next year. Only seven countries will join Japan on the men’s and women’s side in the new event. Qualifying as a country is based on a point system, which can be earned by playing in FIBAsanctioned tournaments around the world. The top three pointearning countries by Nov. 1 will automatically qualify for Tokyo. The U.S. women are currently 21st. If the Americans aren’t in the top three by that date, there will be a lastchance tournament held next spring for the final few spots.

The individually earned points go in a general pool for each country’s federation. FIBA counts the top 100 pointsearners for each federation in determining the standings; the more teams you have and events you participate in, the stronger your top 100 will be. If the U.S. does qualify, it will choose its players from a pool. If the U.S. does qualify, a selection committee will determine which four players will represent the team at the Olympics. However, two of the players on the team will have to be ranked in the top 10 in the country in points earned. The other two must be in the top 50 overall for the country. Those points are earned by playing in FIBA tournaments and playing in higherlevel tournaments to earn a player more points.

Burdick and her teammates would love a chance to represent their country at the Olympics.

“Every little girl who plays basketball dreams of playing in the Olympics,” she said. “To have a chance to do that would be amazing.”

Burdick already has won one gold medal in 3on3 for the U.S., helping the Americans win the FIBA 3x3 World Championship in 2014, when she was in college at Tennessee.