2× WNBA Defensive Player of the Year Award (2014, 2015)
3× WNBA All-Defensive First Team (2014, 2015, 2018)
4× WNBA All-Defensive Second Team (2016, 2017, 2019, 2021)
WNBA All-Rookie Team (2013)
WNBA 25th Anniversary Team (2021)
3× Russian National League champion (2015–2017)
4× EuroLeague champion (2016, 2018, 2019, 2021)
Russian Cup winner (2017)
NCAA champion (2012)
NCAA Final Four Most Outstanding Player (2012)
AP Player of the Year (2012)
Honda Sports Award (2012)
2× Wade Trophy Player of the Year (2012, 2013)
2× First-team All-American – AP (2011, 2012)
Second-team All-American – AP (2010)
3× Big 12 Player of the Year (2011–2013)
4× Big 12 Defensive Player of the Year (2010–2013)
McDonald's All-American (2009)
WBCA High School Player of the Year (2009)
Stats at WNBA.com
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com
Medals
Women's basketball
Representing the United States
Olympic Games
2016 Rio de Janeiro
Team
2020 Tokyo
Team
World Cup
2014 Turkey
2018 Spain
Brittney Griner accepting Wade Trophy at the WBCA Awards show in Denver Colorado 2012
Brittney Yvette Griner (/ˈɡraɪnər/; born October 18, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National Basketball Association (WNBA).[1] She is a two-time Olympic gold medalist with the U.S. women's national basketball team[2] and a six-time WNBA All-Star.[3] She was additionally named one of the 100 most influential people in the world by Time magazine in 2023.[4]
In 2009, Griner was named the nation's No. 1 high school women's basketball player by Rivals.com.[5] She was selected to the 2009 All-American basketball team.[6] She played college basketball for the Baylor Lady Bears in Waco, Texas.[7][8] She had a breakout junior year in 2012, as the three-time All-American was named the AP Player of the Year, the Most Outstanding Player of the Final Four, led Baylor in winning the National Championship, and won the Best Female Athlete ESPY Award. Griner is also the only NCAA basketball player to both score 2,000 points and block 500 shots.[9]
Professionally, Griner was selected as the first overall pick in 2013 WNBA draft by the Phoenix Mercury, with whom she won the 2014 WNBA championship.[10] Standing 6 ft 9 in (206 cm) tall, Griner wears a men's U.S. size 17 shoe and has an arm span of 87.5 in (222 cm).[11][5]
Griner led the U.S. national women's basketball team to victory at the Rio Olympics in 2016.[12] In 2020, Griner protested "The Star-Spangled Banner" and stated she would not be on the court while the national anthem was played during game openers.[13][14] Griner was named to the national team for the 2020 Olympics (held in 2021 in Tokyo, Japan), where she won her second gold medal.[2] She is also a two-time FIBA Women's World Cup winner with Team USA (2014 and 2018).
On February 17, 2022, Griner was detained and arrested on smuggling charges by Russian customs officials after cartridges containing less than a gram of medically prescribed hash oil,[15] illegal in Russia, were found in her luggage. She had been playing basketball with the Russian Premier League during the WNBA off-season. Her trial began on July 1, and she pleaded guilty to the charges. On August 4, she was sentenced to nine years in prison.[16] In November 2022, Griner was transferred to the Russian penal colony IK-2.[17] US officials stated that she was "wrongfully detained".[18] On December 8, Griner was released in a prisoner exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout.[19] On May 19, 2023, she made her reappearance in the WNBA, and she received a standing ovation from the audience. A number of sport celebrities and politicians also attended the game to support her and celebrate her release.[20]
^"Brittney Griner". Official Site of the WNBA. Archived from the original on May 27, 2015. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
^ ab"Brittney Griner", United States Olympic & Paralympic Committee. Retrieved December 12, 2022
^"Brittney Griner", WNBA.com. Retrieved December 12, 2022
^"Time 100". Time. April 13, 2023. Retrieved April 15, 2023.
^ abJeff Fedotin, Griner named nation's no. 1 player Archived March 4, 2009, at the Wayback Machine, Yahoo Sports. Retrieved April 19, 2013.
^"McDonald's Girls All-American Teams Announced". Maxpreps.com. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
^"Houston rocket: Nimitz 6–6 sophomore "Brittney Griner is taking off"". Sports Illustrated. January 16, 2007. Archived from the original on January 26, 2007. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
^Griner, Brittney. "Baylor Women's Basketball Player Bio". Baylorbears.com. Archived from the original on July 7, 2011. Retrieved April 29, 2013.
^Longman, Jeré (March 19, 2013). "Brittney Griner's Final Season Draws Applause and Crowds". The New York Times. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
^"Brittney Griner". WNBA.com – Official Site of the WNBA. Retrieved August 4, 2021.
^"Brittney Griner". Team USA. Archived from the original on October 16, 2014. Retrieved November 16, 2021.
^"Brittney Griner: National anthem has no place in WNBA, sports". yahoo.com. July 27, 2020. Archived from the original on December 9, 2022. Retrieved March 26, 2022.
^Boren, Cindy (July 28, 2020). "Brittney Griner, Brianna Turner call for WNBA to stop playing national anthem this season". The Washington Post. Retrieved December 8, 2022.
^Cite error: The named reference CannabisNYT was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :2 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^Cite error: The named reference :3 was invoked but never defined (see the help page).
^"Mural of Brittney Griner, other detained Americans unveiled in Georgetown". The Washington Post. July 20, 2022. ISSN 0190-8286. Retrieved October 22, 2022.
^"Brittney Griner released by Russia in 1-for-1 prisoner swap for arms dealer Viktor Bout". CBS News. December 9, 2022.
^"Griner returns to basketball with Oregon supporters". www.streetroots.org. Retrieved July 1, 2023.
Brittney Yvette Griner (/ˈɡraɪnər/; born October 18, 1990) is an American professional basketball player for the Phoenix Mercury of the Women's National...
former Temple power forward Candice Dupree, former Baylor center BrittneyGriner, and Australian guard Penny Taylor. In February 2023, Mat Ishbia completed...
{{cite web}}: CS1 maint: archived copy as title (link) "BrittneyGriner's wife, Glory Johnson-Griner, announces pregnancy | For The Win". USA Today. June...
the release of Women's National Basketball Association player BrittneyGriner. Griner had been detained by customs officers in Sheremetyevo International...
two-time Olympic champion BrittneyGriner was arrested on drug charges in Russia by the Russian Federal Security Service. Griner was detained while returning...
child. On December 8, 2022, BrittneyGriner was successfully returned to the United States of America after the BrittneyGriner–Viktor Bout prisoner exchange...
Griner is a surname that may refer to the following people: BrittneyGriner (born 1990), American basketball player Carolyn S. Griner, former Acting Director...
no other Sky players scored in the game. The Mercury were led by BrittneyGriner with 20 points, Diana Taurasi with 17, and Skylar Diggins-Smith with...
transformative moment for the families who founded BOFH. The detention of BrittneyGriner in Russia, who is a member of BOFH, has elevated the profile of wrongful...
Candice Dupree (who was traded to the Mercury in 2010), rising star BrittneyGriner (who was drafted 1st overall in the 2013 WNBA draft) and the arrival...
Maya Moore of UConn, Seimone Augustus of Louisiana State University, BrittneyGriner of Baylor University, and Caitlin Clark of the University of Iowa....
Russia's 'Merchant Of War' And Why He Was The Prisoner Exchanged For BrittneyGriner". Forbes. Archived from the original on August 21, 2023. Retrieved...
Brunson again made the All-Star Game, starting in place of the injured BrittneyGriner. Brunson set the career mark for rebounds in the Finals, with 130,...
the Week: BrittneyGriner and Jonquel Jones". wnba.com. WNBA. July 12, 2021. Retrieved July 13, 2021. "WNBA Players of the Week: BrittneyGriner and Jonquel...
professional athlete designs with Scott Fujita and Chris Kluwe, and BrittneyGriner. Ferguson uses his full name as there was already an actor called Jesse...
gain an independent assessment of the Russian invasion of Ukraine. BrittneyGriner, who was arrested in Russia for carrying hashish oil before being involved...
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