February 20, (THEWILL) – Basketball star, Brittney Griner, who was imprisoned in Russia for almost a year, has reportedly signed a one-year deal with Women’s NBA team, the Phoenix Mercury.
The 32-year-old centre had previously helped the team win a WNBA title in 2014. THEWILL recalls that Griner had expressed a desire to return to her WNBA career after being released in a prisoner exchange in December 2021. Her detention, which came after a small amount of cannabis oil was found in her luggage, was considered wrongful imprisonment by US officials and caused an international outcry.
Although the Mercury have yet to confirm the signing, they did announce on Saturday, that Diana Taurasi, one of the team’s star guards, would be returning for her 19th season with the WNBA.
Griner’s most recent season with the Mercury was in 2021, when the team reached the WNBA Final, only to be defeated by the Chicago Sky.
Jude Obafemi is a versatile senior Correspondent at THEWILL Newspapers, excelling in sourcing, researching, and delivering sports news stories for both print and digital publications.
