Brittney Griner is again residence within the United States after being detained in Russia for the final 10 months over trumped up hashish costs. Griner’s launched was executed by President Joe Biden in a prisoner change for Viktor Bout. Griner is now starting the lengthy street to restoration again residence together with her household, and on Friday she posted on social media for the primary time.
Griner thanked her spouse, her company, grassroots organizers, and the politicians who ultimately had been capable of set her free in an Instagram publish. She additionally dropped just a little nugget: she intends to play for the Phoenix Mercury this season when the brand new 12 months begins in May. Here’s Griner’s Instagram publish, with the total caption copied beneath:
Here’s what Griner wrote in her caption:
It feels so good to be residence! The final 10 months have been a battle at each flip. I dug deep to maintain my religion and it was the love from so lots of you that helped maintain me going. From the underside of my coronary heart, thanks to everybody on your assist.
I’m grateful to every one that advocated for me, particularly my spouse, Cherelle Griner, my household, Lindsay Kagawa Colas and Casey Wasserman and my entire staff at Wasserman, Vince Kozar and the Phoenix Mercury, the gamers of the WNBA, and my whole WNBA household, Terri Jackson and the WNBPA employees, my Russian authorized staff Maria Blagovolina and Alex Boykov, the leaders, activists, and grassroots organizations, Gov. Richardson and Mickey Bergman of the Richardson Center, the Bring Our Families Home Campaign, Roger Carstens and the SPEHA staff, and naturally, a particular thanks to President Biden, Vice President Harris, Secretary Blinken and all the Biden-Harris Administration.
President Biden, you introduced me residence and I do know you might be dedicated to bringing Paul Whelan and all Americans residence too. I’ll use my platform to do no matter I can that can assist you. I additionally encourage everybody that performed a component in bringing me residence to proceed their efforts to deliver all Americans residence. Every household deserves to be entire.
As I transition residence to benefit from the holidays with my household, I need to acknowledge and thank all the PISA employees and medical staff on the San Antonio Fort Hood Base. I respect the time and care to ensure I used to be okay and outfitted with the instruments for this new journey.
I additionally need to make one factor very clear: I intend to play basketball for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury this season, and in doing so, I stay up for with the ability to say ‘thank you’ to these of you who advocated, wrote, and posted for me in particular person quickly.
Love all the time,
BG #42
Photo credit score: U.S. Army South picture by Miguel Negron
Griner final performed for the Phoenix Mercury through the 2021 season when she led her membership to the WNBA Finals, the place they had been defeated by the Chicago Sky in 4 video games.
Griner is 32 years outdated and is taken into account one of many nice ladies’s basketball gamers of this era. She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist for Team USA, and an 8-time WNBA All-Star. She additionally helped lead Phoenix to the 2014 WNBA championship.
Fans across the nation will now be capable of cheer on Griner this season. It’s so good to have BG again residence, and will probably be nice to see her again on the ground.