SALEM -- The list of obvious cultural icons allowed on Oregon's "specialty" license plates isn't very long: Crater Lake, bicycles, salmon, a handful of university logos and some vineyards filled, presumably, with plump pinot noir grapes.

That may change as soon as this summer, thanks to legislation pushed by one of the no-brainer icons left off that roster: the Portland Trail Blazers.

Under House Bill 2730, Oregon would join 45 other states in letting drivers trumpet their allegiance to a cherished sports franchise -- the Blazers, in this case -- at the same time as it flings off strict rules that limit how many specialty plates the state can offer at any one time.

"It's one of the things that can unite the whole state," the bill's chief sponsor, Rep. Tobias Read, D-Beaverton, said of the Blazers plates.

But that expansion also comes with wrinkles.

HB 2730 forbids political and religious messages. It puts limits on who can apply and reap the benefits: nonprofits, public universities, and government agencies -- such as Portland, which could conceivably gin up "Keep Portland Weird" plates to help pay for long-neglected road repairs. The bill also requires applicants to pay the startup costs associated with rolling out plates.

For the Blazers, that means the team would need to front tens of thousands of dollars. And even though it's the Blazers' logo driving plate sales -- at $40 a pop --the money would flow instead to the team's charitable arm, the Trail Blazers Foundation.

Which means buying the plates won't do much to persuade team owner Paul Allen to keep big-name free agents from blowing town.

"It's not going to Paul Allen, or raising money to keep LaMarcus Aldridge," said Read. "He's got to find another way to do that."

Michael Lewellen, the team's spokesman, said management has yet to settle on a solid estimate for how much the plates might raise. But he said it's expected to hit six figures, given the team's ability to promote the plates at home games, online through social media, and during radio and TV broadcasts.

That revenue, he added, would help the team's foundation invest largely in "youth-oriented initiatives." And the team has promised, he said, to give the Legislature annual updates on how the money has been spent. That's a nod to reporting last year by The Oregonian/OregonLive that found none of the money raised through sales of salmon plates since 2013 had gone to helping the endangered fish.

Lewellen also pointed to what's still a long legislative road before the bill crosses the governor's desk. Though HB 2730 is expected to get a green light from the Legislature's budget committee, it has yet to clear the House or Senate.

"We're not taking a victory lap yet," he said.

Still, it's not as if there isn't something in the deal for the Blazers, too: Free advertising.

Roger Noll, a sports economist at Stanford University, laughed loudly when he heard the Blazers were relying on their charity arm to finally join the ranks of sports teams nationwide allowed to use their states' personal vehicles like tiny billboards.

"It's obviously a benefit to have this community advertising," he said, comparing the plates to paying for ads on buses, trains and taxis. "It's small. But it's still positive. It's very clever, and I admire them for thinking of it."

Lewellen was upfront about the hoped-for exposure, calling it part of the team's strategy when it first pitched similar legislation to lawmakers two years ago.

"We hope the Trail Blazers can be seen in the future as Oregon's team," he said, "not just Portland's team."

Oregon currently tracks sales of 39 specialized license plates, which last year pulled in more than $2 million. Most, such as those honoring fallen police officers or veterans groups, are slightly modified versions of the state's basic tree plate. Only a few, such as the state's salmon plates, qualify as the kind of eye-popping, redesigned plates the Blazers are seeking.

By law, Oregon is technically allowed to offer just four of those plates at a time. That would change under HB 2730 -- which also calls for breast cancer awareness plates managed by the Oregon Health Authority. The state's blue-and-yellow "Pacific Wonderland" plates were the most profitable in 2014, earning $577,500 for the Oregon State Capitol Foundation and the Oregon Historical Society.

It's unclear what the Blazers' plate might look like. Lewellan says the team has begun some preliminary design work but cautions that a final plate would need approval from both the Oregon Department of Transportation and the Oregon State Police.

It's also unclear whether the state's other major pro sports teams, the Timbers and Thorns, might follow the Blazers in working with a charity to put their own logos on potentially thousands of license plates. Timbers officials, when asked for comment, said they need to review options and learn more about HB 2730.

Read, who said colleagues from both sides of the aisle have been badgering him to put their names on the bill, chalked that up to history.

"The Timbers are up and coming," he said, potentially risking his political future, "but people have a longer history with the Trail Blazers."

-- Denis C. Theriault

503-221-8430; @TheriaultPDX