Brittney Griner was all smiles when she returned to the basketball court a year after she was arrested and incarcerated in a Russian prison.
The 32-year-old WNBA star smiled as she shot hoops just days after re-signing with the Phoenix Mercury on a one-year deal. The season starts in May.
Griner had said he would return to Phoenix in a social media post in December, after returning home from his 10-month ordeal in Russia.
Griner had been arrested at an airport outside Moscow on drug possession charges a year ago and was brought home in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange in December.
Brittney Griner, 32, was all smiles when she returned to the basketball court a year after she was arrested and jailed in a Russian prison.
Griner wrote on a chalkboard in Mercury’s locker room that reads, “I’M BACK MF!!”
Griner had been arrested at an airport outside Moscow on drug possession charges a year ago and was brought home in a dramatic high-level prisoner exchange in December.
The 6-foot-9 center last played for the Mercury in 2021 and helped the team reach the WNBA Finals. She averaged 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds that season.
Photos of the star were published in the team social media platforms this week.
Griner smiles in one of the photos as he prepares to throw the ball up the court.
Another photo shows a note written by Griner on a chalkboard in Mercury’s locker room that reads: “I’M BACK MF!!”
The signing of the one-year contract, reportedly worth $165,100, was confirmed on Tuesday.
“It’s a great day for all of us to announce that Brittney Griner has officially signed to play for the Mercury in 2023,” Mercury general manager Jim Pitman said.
We will continue to use the resources of our organization to support her, on and off the court, and we are thrilled for her that she is able to return to the basketball she loves so much. This is a special signing and today is a special day for all of us.
Griner hasn’t played for the Mercury since 2021, when she led Phoenix to the WNBA Finals before losing to the Chicago Sky.
The former Baylor star was released from a Russian penal colony in December after being acquired in a US-Russia prisoner swap from convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.
Griner, who had played professionally in Russia since 2014, was returning to the country in February when she was stopped at the Moscow airport with what authorities claimed were vape cartridges containing cannabis oil.
Brittney Griner has completed her return to the Phoenix Mercury, the WNBA team confirmed Tuesday
Griner hugs his wife after returning to the US from Russia via the United Arab Emirates
Griner arrived at Kelly Field in San Antonio after his release in a prisoner exchange in December.
Griner was returning to Russia in February when she was detained at Moscow airport with what authorities claimed were vape cartridges containing cannabis oil.
Griner sits inside the defendants’ cage after the court verdict on the outskirts of Moscow in August.
Ultimately, Griner was found guilty in August and sentenced to nine years in a Russian penal colony. A subsequent appeal was denied in October.
She had been assigned to a penal colony in Mordovia, a region known for its brutal prison system, until the Biden administration was able to secure her release earlier this month. She was detained in Russia for 10 months.
“President Biden, you brought me home, and I know you are committed to bringing Paul Whelan and all Americans home, too,” he said in December.
I will use my platform to do everything I can to help you. I also encourage everyone who played a role in bringing me home to continue their efforts to bring all Americans home. Every family deserves to be complete.
The Biden administration negotiated with the Kremlin for months to get Griner and Whelan back from Russia, but only succeeded in getting the WNBA star in exchange for Bout.
“I don’t think any of us forget where we were on Dec. 8 when we heard BG was coming home or Dec. 15 when he announced he intended to not only play basketball in 2023, but it would be for Mercury,” Mercury said. added president of business operations Vince Kozar on Tuesday.
And I know that none of us will ever forget what it will feel like to welcome you to your apartment on May 21st.
“To know BG is to love and appreciate BG, and we can’t wait to show it to him in person with thousands upon thousands of his top supporters exactly three months from today at our welcome home opening.”
Since her return from a Russian penal colony, where she was incarcerated on drug charges, Griner has been seen with her wife Cherelle at Super Bowl LVII in Glendale, Arizona.
Griner hasn’t played for the Mercury since 2021, when she led Phoenix to the WNBA Finals.
Griner is seen being escorted ahead of a verdict in her August trial in Russia.
Biden meets with Cherelle Griner about the release of his wife Brittney Griner, in the Oval Office.
Griner and Bout passed each other on a track in the United Arab Emirates to complete the exchange. Referred to by some as the ‘merchant of death’, Bout was arrested on terrorism charges in 2008 and later convicted in the US.
The deal has drawn criticism from Republicans, who were upset that the White House couldn’t get Whelan as well.
Responding to attacks from the right, White House officials acknowledged that prisoner exchanges are costly, adding that they felt compelled to bring Griner home while they had the chance.
The 6-foot-9 Griner is an eight-time US All-Star and one of only 11 players to win an Olympic gold medal, FIBA World Cup gold medal, FIBA World Cup title, WNBA and NCAA title, which she captured at Baylor. in 2012.