SEATTLE (AP) — Brittney Griner was back in action with the Phoenix Mercury Saturday night, starting in Seattle against the Storm.
Griner suffered a groin injury when the Mercury and Seattle met in Phoenix on June 13. She left that game during the second quarter and did not return, and the Storm went on to win 83-69. She subsequently missed the next three games, all losses.
Phoenix also welcomed Diana Taurasi back to the starting lineup on Saturday. She also missed the last three games due to a hamstring injury she sustained during the same home game against Seattle.
It was Griner’s first appearance in Seattle since a playoff game in 2021. She missed the entirety of last season while being held in Russia for drug possession. Greiner returned to the United States after her release in December and returned to Mercury.
It was the second road game played since an incident at the Dallas-Fort Worth airport on June 9 when Grenier was harassed by a “provocateur” on social media while the team was heading into their flight to play a game in Indiana. Since then, the Mercury and the WNBA have been evaluating travel options for Griner and the team.
Greiner has been greeted warmly throughout the league, and Saturday in Seattle was no different. She was the last player introduced among the Phoenix starting line-ups, and received a standing ovation from the crowd. She tapped her heart several times and waved to both ends of the Climate Pledge Arena.
During early warm-ups, she was greeted by a small group of fans standing along the rail above the player’s entrance to the playing floor with “Hey, BG!” and “Welcome Back” when Mercury takes court. She slapped her hands with several of them and said, “Thank you.”
On her way back to the locker room about 50 minutes before the game, Griner took several pictures with the fans — she even took some phones and took pictures of herself. They also exchanged a few hugs, signed autographs, and gave to some little ones
Griner and her teammates stayed on the field for the national anthem. The Storm players left, as was customary, before the anthem was played and returned after.
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