Thousands of fans cheered on 3-time WNBA Champion Seattle Storm as they took to the streets of downtown Seattle for a parade and rally celebrating their victory over Washington Mystics 98-82 in a sweep of the WNBA finals.
Members of the team rode trolley cars on the parade route, which started at MoPop at Seattle Center and ended at KeyArena, where thousands gathered to rally.
"It feels really good to bring a championship back to the city," said the Storm's star point guard Sue Bird, who proudly wore a "Stewie MVP" sweatshirt., referring to fellow teammate and league and finals MVP Breanna "Stewie" Stewart.
"She was MVP of the regular season, at finals, she played amazing," said Bird.
"Winning this championship, we wanted to bring it home and celebrate it with Seattle, and that's what we're doing today," said Stewart. "My message to the young kids is continue to work hard. Make sure you're out working everybody and have goals, set goals and achieve them."
Among the fans cheering the team on were Seattle Mayor Jenny Durkan and Police Chief Carmen Best. Mayor Durkan, a longtime Storm fan, shared what makes the team special.
"I think it's a number of things. Number one, it's the grit and determination. A lot of people counted them out early in the season, and they didn't. They showed what they could play through," said Durkan.
The Storm earned their 3rd WNBA title last week in Fairfax, Virginia in three games of a best-of-5 series.
League MVP Breanna Stewart led the team with 30 points and 8 rebounds, earning her MVP honors for the championship game.
In addition to Stewie's impressive stats, forward Natasha Howard hit a career-high 29 points and 14 rebounds. Team captain Sue Bird added 10 points and 10 assists.
Bird is now celebrating her third championship with the Storm.
"This is probably going to be one of the most defining moments of my career," Bird said.
Head Coach Dan Hughes is celebrating his first league title after previously leading two other WNBA teams to the playoffs.
Show us how you've been supporting the Seattle Storm this season. Post your congratulations and photos on the KING 5 Facebook page as we continue our coverage of the Storm's winning legacy.
