Brittney Griner plays first WNBA game since release from Russian prison

LOS ANGELES — Brittney Griner played her first regular-season game in the WNBA on Friday night, returning to action with the Phoenix Mercury against the Los Angeles Sparks.

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Friday’s game was the season opener and Griner’s first game since Game 4 of the WNBA Finals in October 2021, The Washington Post reported. It was her first official game since being detained in a Russian jail for 10 months last year,

Griner scored 18 points, had six rebounds and blocked four shots, according to The Associated Press.

Vice President Kamala Harris and first gentleman Doug Emhoff attended the game. Harris was presented with a Sparks jersey before the game, according to the Los Angeles Times.

Harris also stopped by the Mercury’s locker room to greet Griner, the AP reported.

“It was nice to be able to see her face-to-face and thank her for everything,” Griner said, according to the AP.

“Thank you for all that you did in supporting Brittney,” Harris told the Mercury. “I know that was rough and so difficult,” Harris said to the Mercury, according to ESPN.

Part-owners of the Sparks, Billie Jean King and wife Ilana Kloss, as well as Magic Johnson, Pau Gasol, Byron Scott, and Robert Horry, were also in attendance, the AP reported.

Griner, 32, was in the game for about 25 minutes, The Washington Post reported. The Mercury lost to the Sparks 94-71.

Griner’s return to the court was one of what the newspaper called “the most unlikely comeback stories in sports history.” Griner was facing years in a penal colony in Russia after she was there playing basketball during the WNBA offseason and officials found cannabis oil in her luggage in February 2022. She spent nearly a year in custody in Russia before returning to the United States last December in a prisoner swap for Viktor Bout, convicted arms trafficker.

“Today is a day of joy. An amazing, amazing thing has happened,” Mercury coach Vanessa Nygaard said, according to the AP.

“I’m so glad she’s home. It’s a miracle that she’s here. BG stands for so much, so many different kinds of people who can be undervalued in our society. And is even using her platform now to bring others home,” Nygaard said, according to ESPN.

Griner said that being incarcerated led her to “appreciate everything a little bit more,” after the game Friday, according to the Washington Post.

The Mercury and Griner received a standing ovation when they came out on the court, the AP reported. Fans arrived before the game at Crypto.com Arena with T-shirts with Griner’s name and jersey number on them.

“It was nice to be back on the court for a real game,” Griner said, according to the AP. “The love from the fans when we came out was amazing. I definitely feel it.”

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