Brittney Griner is truly and finally back in the WNBA, and she made her first bucket after over a year of wait in the Phoenix Mercury's opening showdown with the Los Angeles Sparks on Friday.
Griner didn't waste time getting into action with the Mercury. Early in the first quarter, the 32-year-old center found herself open in the perimeter when she received a pass from Diana Taurasi. So she quickly pulled up from her spot and drained the jumper to give Phoenix the early 5-0 lead.
Brittney Griner with her first bucket of the 2023 season š
(via @WNBA)pic.twitter.com/CETEkukCQ7
ā Sports Illustrated (@SInow) May 20, 2023
Here's another angle of Griner's shot:
Welcome back, Brittney Griner š
It's her first game action and bucket since October 17, 2021 (WNBA Finals).pic.twitter.com/iGSiQa95lm
ā ClutchPoints (@ClutchPointsApp) May 20, 2023
It is certainly a special moment for Brittney Griner and her family. It has been 579 days since she played in the WNBA and made a basket in the league, having last suited up back on October 17, 2021.
As everyone knows, it hasn't been an easy journey for Griner back to the WNBA. She was detained in Russia last February 2022 due to allegations of drug smuggling. The issue stemmed from her possession of vape cartridges that contained hash oil derived from cannabis. She was imprisoned for 10 months before the US government reached a prisoner exchange agreement with Russia, where they sent convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.
Griner was able to return and celebrate Christmas with her family. Later on, she signed a one-year deal with the Mercury as she started off her journey back to the WNBA.
Now, the veteran center is officially here again. While the Mercury lost to the Sparks in the opener, 94-71, Griner had quite the memorable game as she finished with 18 points and five rebounds in 25 minutes of action.
Welcome back, Brittney!
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