WNBA World Shocked by Longtime Mercury Star Brittney Griner Joining Atlanta Dream

Griner decided to leave the Phoenix Mercury after 11 seasons.
Phoenix Mercury center Griner and mascot Scorch celebrate her score in the WNBA All-Star Game Skills Challenge at Footprint Center in Phoenix on Friday, July 19, 2024.
Phoenix Mercury center Griner and mascot Scorch celebrate her score in the WNBA All-Star Game Skills Challenge at Footprint Center in Phoenix on Friday, July 19, 2024. / Joe Rondone/The Republic / USA TODAY NETWORK

The WNBA landscape was shaken up Tuesday. First, the Phoenix Mercury traded for Connecticut Sun star Alyssa Thomas. Then, longtime Mercury star center Brittney Griner decided to leave Phoenix after 11 seasons to join the Atlanta Dream.

Griner is set to join the Dream on a one-year deal, according to a report from ESPN's Shams Charania and Alexa Philippou. Griner decided to test the free agent market for the first time this offseason. With WNBA free agency kicking off in a matter of days, on Feb. 1, she has already made up her mind. The deal with Atlanta can become official once contracts are able to be signed Saturday.

The Mercury selected Griner with the No. 1 pick in 2013 and she went on to make 10 All-Star teams and win a WNBA title in 2014 over her 11 seasons with the franchise. After spending her entire career in the desert, Griner is off to Atlanta to team up with Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray.

After a seismic shift across the league, the WNBA world was shocked by Griner's decision:

Howard and Gray chimed in, too:

Griner posted a video on her Instagram account explaining her decision while fishing with her new teammates in Miami at Unrivaled:

What a wild start to the WNBA offseason. And February hasn't even hit yet.


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Blake Silverman
BLAKE SILVERMAN

Blake Silverman is a contributor to the Breaking and Trending News team at Sports Illustrated. Before joining SI in November 2024, he covered the WNBA, NBA, G League and college basketball for numerous sites, including Winsidr, SB Nation's Detroit Bad Boys and A10Talk. He graduated from Michigan State University before receiving a master's in sports journalism from St. Bonaventure University. Outside of work, he's probably binging the latest Netflix documentary, at a yoga studio or enjoying everything Detroit sports. A lifelong Michigander, he lives in suburban Detroit with his wife, young son and their personal petting zoo of two cats and a dog.