Brittney Griner breaks silence following Russian prisoner swap, vows to return for upcoming WNBA season

WNBA star Brittney Griner spoke out for the first time Friday since returning to the U.S. nearly 10 months after she was arrested and sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison for drug smuggling, vowing that she will return to the court this season to play. 

Griner posted a lengthy statement to her Instagram on Friday where she thanked a number of people including the WNBA, the Biden Administration and the league for advocating for her safe return. 

‘It feels so good to be home! The last 10 months have been a battle at every turn. I dug deep to keep my faith and it was the love from so many of you that helped keep me going. From the bottom of my heart, thank you to everyone for your help,” she wrote in the post. 

Griner returned to the U.S. last week after the Biden administration and Russia agreed to a prisoner swap in which Griner would be sent back to the U.S. from a penal colony for Viktor Bout – a convicted arms dealer known as the “Merchant of Death.”

“President Biden, you brought me home and I know you are committed to bringing Paul Whelan and all Americans home too,” Griner said Friday. 

“I will use my platform to do whatever I can to help you. I also encourage everyone that played a part in bringing me home to continue their efforts to bring all Americans home. Every family deserves to be whole.” 

The two-time Olympic medalist also took the opportunity to announce that she will return for the upcoming WNBA season.

“I also want to make one thing very clear: I intend to play basketball for the WNBA’s Phoenix Mercury this season, and in doing so, I look forward to being able to say ‘thank you’ to those of you who advocated, wrote, and posted for me in person soon.”

This is a breaking news story, Check back for updates.