The expansion teams are stuck between a rock and a hard place. On one hand, they have little knowledge on how the new CBA will turn out. There is still not a date set for the expansion draft which is essential for their team planning. That makes management difficult. On the other, if they don’t prepare for a quick turnaround, everything could fall apart once things get going. Amid this uncertainty, it seems the Portland Fire is arming itself with some of the best people in the industry.

First, they hired Vanja Černivec as the general manager. Last season, Cernivec served as the vice president of basketball operations for the Golden State Valkyries, the best expansion team in the history of the WNBA. Ashley Battle, a former WNBA player turned broadcaster, came in as the vice president of basketball operations. Alex Sarama was hired as the team’s head coach. Now, the team has hired a journalist to their management staff.

According to Front Office Sports, the Portland Fire have hired Ben Pickman, who previously covered the league for The Athletic, to its front office. They reported that Pickman will serve as a salary cap and strategy analyst. Pickman announced his departure from Athletic on January 15.

“It’s hard to step away from working with so many colleagues who have become friends. But that’s what I’m doing, and I’m excited for what my next chapter holds,” Pickman wrote. “I will continue to follow my brilliant colleagues covering WBB at The Athletic. And thank you for reading and listening. I’ll be forever grateful. More to come soon…”

He has reported on the WNBA for 7 years, 4 of which were at Sports Illustrated. He is not the only one to make the transition from journalism to the front office. ESPN executive editor Cristina Daglas became the head of research and identity for Monumental basketball back in October 2025. In 2018, Sports Illustrated writer Lee Jenkins did the same for the Los Angeles Clippers.

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This phenomenon is not without reason as Pickman along with others have an in-depth knowledge of each team and the industry. That especially applies for the Fire and Pickman in this unique scenario where they have too many variables to work around. The salary cap is not set yet and Pickman’s connections in the league office and around the WNBA will help Portland create the best launch pad for their debut season.

Their front office situation has already been chaotic. The Portland Fire fired their first president Iky Son after just 2 months in June 2025. According to FOS, former Nike executive Clare Hamill took over on the interim but no permanent replacement has been hired since. And just as Portland stocks up for the unknown, the league itself is facing mounting pressure, with CBA tensions boiling over among players.

Veteran Expresses Dissatisfaction After WNBA Makes Key Revelation

The WNBA is set to be delayed. According to ESPN, the league has given March 10 as the final date on which the term sheet should be completed for the 2026 season not to be impacted. That is just two weeks of time.

Even after agreeing on the CBA, it could take “weeks to ratify” per Alexa Philippou. In that period the league has to conduct the biggest free agency in its history, an expansion draft for the two teams along with the rookie draft. And if the current reaction has to be judged, it doesn’t seem like a CBA will be agreed upon by the given date.

10-year veteran Kiah Stokes reposted this news on her Instagram while writing, “Which is so crazy that the league refused to negotiate in good faith the last 18 months. Now tryna speed sh*t up so we sign whatever.”

This is the general tone the WNBPA have had over the past few months. They have accused the WNBA of playing the waiting game and hoping that the WNBPA give in. Currently, the players stand firm on their demand. It’s worthwhile to note that Stokes is not in the WNBPA leadership or a player representative. So she might not know the latest update on the negotiations.