What Brittney Griner said about US national anthem after WNBA return
Brittney is back and with that the WNBA star has now taken a moment to reflect on what her return to basketball means after incarceration in Russia.
The Mercury star has finally made her long-awaited return to the court, after a harrowing ordeal in a Russian prison. It goes without saying, that the former WNBA champion has been moved by her recent experience, something she opened up about.
Brittney Griner thinks differently of the national anthem
If you missed it last Friday, Brittney Griner played in her first WNBA game for the Phoenix Mercury since returning to the United States after being held in a Russian prison for majority of last year. To her credit, Griner’s first game back was a solid performance, something she can be proud of. Yet, as she explained the biggest moment of her night was not being back on the court, but rather what she experienced before the game started. Indeed, speaking in a recent interview, Griner opened up about the wide array of emotions that she felt while listening to the national anthem as it played before the preseason game got underway.
“Hearing the national anthem, it definitely hit different,” Griner said, via CNN. “It’s like when you go for the Olympics, you’re sitting there, about to get gold put on your neck, the flags are going up and the anthem is playing, it just hits different. ...Being here today...it means a lot.”
What happened to Brittney Griner?
In December of last year, Griner was released by Russian authorities after serving 10 months in a prison for allegedly carrying cannabis oil cartridges in her luggage as she attempted to go through Russian immigration at an airport. To be clear, Griner was initially sentenced to nine years in prison, before she became part of a prisoner exchange deal which ultimately saw her return to the United States. As a result of her incarceration, Griner missed the entire 2022-23 WNBA season. Interestingly, Griner has since stated that she will remain part of the Olympic team despite declaring that she will no longer play overseas. The Mercury are due to start their campaign this coming Friday against the Los Angeles Sparks.