What should the Bay Area’s new WNBA team be called?

With the WNBA officially announcing Thursday that the Bay Area is going to receive an expansion team for the 2025 season, the big question that remains is what it should be called.

It’s not an easy decision. The ideal name needs to land at some intersection of cultural resonance, local pride and, for better or for worse, marketability that can last for years to come. In other words, the opposite of the Washington Wizards.

There’s plenty about San Francisco, Oakland and beyond to call upon for this team that will join a sports city rife with championship history. Owner Joe Lacob already revealed Thursday that the name will likely include “Golden State.” With all that in mind, here are some potential names that the new Bay Area franchise should at the very least consider before its inaugural season.

One of the most iconic teams in San Francisco sports history was the Seals of the Pacific Coast League. The team produced greats like Joe DiMaggio, Vernon “Lefty” Gomez and Paul Waner, along with the fascinating Con Dempsey. Legendary baseball figure and Bay Area sports Hall of Famer Lefty O’Doul was the longtime manager who helped produce some of those greats as well. It would be a great nod to the past while not stealing any previous glory, as the the team’s location will be “Golden State,” instead of one specific city. One person on social media already has a mock-up.

It’s no secret that San Franciscans adore the city’s foggy climate so much that they’ve named it. While the Karls wouldn’t make any sense to anyone outside the Bay Area — and perhaps even to many within it — the Fog is the next best thing. It’s certainly not the most colorful option, but it continues the WNBA’s general meteorological theme with the Sun, Sky, Mercury and Storm.

One potential name is staring this organization right in the face through one of San Francisco’s most iconic silhouettes. The Painted Ladies have made appearances in history books and television shows, and now, they can appear on WNBA basketball courts around the country.

The Riveters would be more of a nod toward history that wasn’t sports-related. Naomi Parker was 20 years old when a photographer snapped her photo as she worked at a naval air station in Alameda. That image would later be the inspiration for Rosie the Riveter. A professional women’s hockey team in New York carried this name, but it was folded as a new league popped up, with branding for the new New York team unknown as of publication.

This is not Joe Lacob’s first time owning a women’s basketball team. Lacob ran the San Jose Lasers in the now-defunct American Basketball League, a predecessor to the WNBA. The Warriors owner said back in 2017 that he remembers that era fondly, except for the reported $10 million he lost in the venture, which meant more to him back then since he wasn’t as rich. Lacob has a lot more money now, so maybe he can wash away old memories of that unsuccessful ownership tenure with this one.

The Pioneers were the first San Francisco women’s basketball team, playing in the Women’s Pro Basketball League from 1979 to 1981. It’s hard to imagine a better nod to the history of women’s sports in the Bay Area than to revive the old logo and name into a new generation where women’s sports have a lot more support than they did back then.

We also polled some SFGATE staffers for name suggestions. Here are a few that could work just as well as others, along with some that almost certainly won’t work: the Amazons, the Albino Alligators, the Wild Parrots, the Monarchs, the Spiders, the Aspens, the Coyotes, the Victorians and the Breakers.