Portland Fire Solve Post Problem, Sign Megan Gustafson
Megan Guston, most recently a 2025 WNBA champion rotation big for the Las Vegas Aces, is headed to Portland.
A day after former London Lions star Karlie Samuelson signed with Portland, the Fire reached terms with another London Lions alum: Megan Gustafson.
The news of Gustafson’s signing was first broken by ESPN reporter Alexa Philippou.
Gustafson, whose most recent playing experience featured a WNBA championship with the Las Vegas Aces, reconnects with former London Lions general manager Vanja Černivec and assistant coach Alex Sarama, now in charge of Portland’s expansion franchise.
In 2018 and 2019, the Iowa Hawkeye center was named the Big Ten Conference Women’s Basketball Player of the Year. In early January 2020, the Hawkeyes retired her number 10 jersey.
In the summer of 2019, she entered the league as a second round draft pick of the Dallas Wings, but was released before the season began. After brief stints with Dallas and Washington, Gustafson broke out with the Phoenix Mercury in 2022, playing 33 games. She played a career high 34 games the following season, averaging a career high 15 minutes per game.
London beckoned during the following WNBA offseason, and she signed with Černivec & Sarama’s club that August. Her time in one of the great world capitals featured a British Basketball League championship, and a WBBL Finals MVP award.
Returning to the W with Las Vegas, Gustafson grew into a reliable old-school post player with a penchant for interior defense and rebounds in limited minutes. She now headlines the competition for Portland’s starting center spot.
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Matt Bagley is a professional sportswriter and broadcaster with a passion for women’s sports. Outside of work, he cherishes quality time with his birth family, his chosen family, and one very pesky house panther.
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