Brittney Griner Says She Won’t Return to Playing Overseas

The Phoenix Mercury center was incarcerated for much of 2022.

After a harrowing ordeal in Russia, Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner intends to ply her trade in the United States going forward.

Griner will not play overseas in the future except as a member of the United States national team, she announced Thursday in her first press conference since her Dec. 8 release.

“I’m never going overseas to play again unless it’s to represent my country,” Griner said. “The whole reason a lot of us go over is the pay gap … to support our families, to support ourselves.”

Griner has spent much of her career moonlighting in Russia with UMMC Ekaterinburg in Yekaterinburg, and it was while playing with the club that she was arrested on drug charges on Feb. 17, 2022, when Russian officials said they found hashish oil in her luggage.

On Aug. 4, Griner was sentenced to nine years in prison; she was eventually released in a prisoner swap for convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout after a 10-month detainment. 

Now back in the U.S., Griner plans to continue playing in the WNBA. The eight-time All-Star is currently ramping back up for a return to the court with the Mercury, who begin the 2023 season on May 19 against the Sparks.

“I’m no stranger to hard times,” Griner told reporters. “You’re going to be faced with adversities throughout your life, and this was a pretty big one. But I just kind of relied on my hard work … you find a way to just grind it out.”