Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner will not travel with the team on its upcoming two-game road trip to focus on her mental health, the team announced Saturday.
The Mercury play the Chicago Sky on Sunday and Indiana Fever on Tuesday. In a team statement, the Mercury say they “fully support Brittney and we will continue to work together on a timeline for her return.”
The eight-time All-Star has averaged 18.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 2.0 assists in 20 games played this season. Griner has spent her entire 10-year WNBA career with Phoenix, averaging 17.7 points, 7.5 rebounds and 1.8 assists.
Griner returned to the court this season after being detained in Russia after being found guilty of drug smuggling and possession charges. She was then sentenced to nine years in Russian prison before returning to the United States nine months later in December 2022 in a deal made by the U.S. government, which was a one-for-one prisoner swap in which Russia sent Griner to the U.S. for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.
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