Free-agent center Brittney Griner has signed a one-year contract with the Phoenix Mercury, according to multiple reports. Here’s what you need to know:
- Griner, 32, missed last season as she was detained in Russia for nearly nine months. She signed a three-year extension with Phoenix in 2020 and the team said it would pay her full 2022 salary.
- Upon returning home in December, she said she planned to play for the Mercury next season.
- The seven-time All-Star and 2013 No. 1 draft pick has played her entire career in Phoenix, winning the WNBA title in 2014. Griner averaged 20.5 points and 9.5 rebounds per game in 2021.
Backstory
Griner was detained in Russia on Feb. 17, 2022, when authorities at a Moscow-area airport said they found less than one gram of hashish oil in vape canisters in her luggage. A Russian court convicted her of drug smuggling and possession charges and sentenced her to nine years in prison on Aug. 4.
Griner was released from a Russian prison on Dec. 8 and returned to the United States to be reunited with her family. In exchange for her release, the U.S. government agreed to a one-for-one prisoner swap for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
In an Instagram post after her return, Griner pledged to use her platform to help bring home Paul Whelan — who…
