Portland Fire will reportedly hire Cavaliers assistant Alex Sarama as first head coach after accidental LinkedIn post

The Portland Fire quickly deleted the LinkedIn post on Tuesday morning.

PORTLAND, OREGON - JULY 15: The new Portland Fire logo is unveiled outside the Moda Center during the Portland Fire WNBA Launch Party on July 15, 2025 in Portland, Oregon. (Photo by Ali Gradischer/Getty Images)
The Portland Fire are set to hire Alex Sarama as their first ever head coach. (Ali Gradischer/Getty Images)
Ali Gradischer via Getty Images

The Portland Fire seem to have jumped the gun on LinkedIn of all places.

The WNBA’s newest franchise is set to name Alex Sarama as their first ever head coach in the coming days. The Fire, however, accidentally made the announcement prematurely on their LinkedIn account early on Tuesday morning.

That post was quickly deleted. According to Front Office Sports’ Annie Costabile, Sarama is still expected to be named the Fire’s coach once a contract is finalized. It’s unclear specifically when that deal will be in place.

The Fire are one of two expansion franchises set to enter the league next season, along with the Toronto Tempo. The Fire hired Vanja Černivec as their general manager earlier this month after she spent a year working in the Golden State Valkyries’ front office. Černivec and Sarama worked together briefly at the London Lions in the British Basketball League, too.

Most recently, Sarama was hired as an assistant coach with the Cleveland Cavaliers. He also spent time in Portland as an assistant coach and director of player development for the Trail Blazers’ G League franchise.

Specifics of Sarama’s deal are not known. By comparison, both Nate Tibbetts of the Phoenix Mercury and Becky Hammon of the Las Vegas Aces each earn over $1 million per year in their respective roles. They are the only two coaches in the league that are known to be making at least seven figures.

This post will be updated with more information shortly.

Category: General Sports