Brittney Griner ‘re-signs with Mercury on one-year deal’ after being freed from Russian prison camp

As expected, Brittney Griner is returning to the Phoenix Mercury.

After being detained in Russia for 10 months, the 32-year-old free agent has signed a one-year deal with the team, sources told ESPN. Spokespeople for Griner’s agency and the team did not immediately respond to DailyMail.com’s request for confirmation.

Griner has not played for the Mercury since 2021, when she led Phoenix to the WNBA Finals before losing to the Chicago Sky. Regardless, Griner was nearly unstoppable that season, averaging 20.5 points, 1.9 blocks, 2.7 assists, and career-highs with 9.5 rebounds per game.

And there was more good news on Saturday for the Mercury, who also announced that Diana Taurasi – the league’s all-time leading scorer – is returning on a multi-year deal.

Since her return from a Russian penal colony, where she was imprisoned on drug charges, Griner was seen with her wife Cherelle at Super Bowl LVII in Glendale, Arizona.

Since her return from a Russian penal colony, where she was imprisoned on drug charges, Griner was seen with her wife Cherelle at Super Bowl LVII in Glendale, Arizona

Griner acknowledged fans as she watched some golf at the Phoenix Open the day before

The former Baylor star was released from a Russian penal colony in December after being acquired in a US-Russian prisoner swap form convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout.

Griner, who had played professionally in Russia since 2014, was returning to the country in February when she was stopped at the Moscow airport with what authorities claimed to be vape cartridges containing cannabis oil. Ultimately Griner was convicted in August and sentenced to nine years in a Russian penal colony. A subsequent appeal was denied in October.

She had been assigned to a penal colony in Mordovia, a region known for its brutal prison system, until the Biden administration was able to secure her release earlier his month.

‘President Biden, you brought me home and I know you are committed to bringing Paul Whelan and all Americans home too,’ she said in December. ‘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 Biden administration negotiated with the Kremlin for months to get Griner and Whelan back from Russia, but only managed to get the WNBA star in exchange for Bout.

Griner has not played for the Mercury since 2021, when she led Phoenix to the WNBA Finals before losing to the Chicago Sky. Regardless, Griner was nearly unstoppable that season, averaging 20.5 points, 1.9 blocks, 2.7 assists, and career-highs with 9.5 rebounds per game

Brittney Griner is pictured hugging her wife after returning to the US from Russia by way of the United Arab Emirates

Alleged arms smuggler Viktor Bout from Russia looks on from behind bars at a criminal court in Bangkok October 4, 2010

Paul Whelan, a former US Marine accused of espionage and arrested in Russia, listens to his lawyers while standing inside a defendants’ cage during a hearing at a court in Moscow on January 22, 2019. Griner said she is ‘confident’ that the White House can bring him home too

Griner and Bout crossed paths on a tarmac in the United Arab Emirates to complete the trade. Bout, referred to by some as the ‘Merchant of Death,’ was arrested on terrorism charges in 2008 and later convicted in the US.

The deal has drawn criticism from Republicans, who were upset that the White House failed to get Whelan as well. In response to attacks from the right, White House officials acknowledged prisoner swaps are costly, adding that they felt compelled to bring Griner home while they had the chance.

The 6-foot-9 Griner is an eight-time All-Star in the US and one of only 11 players to win an Olympic gold medal, FIBA World Cup gold medal, WNBA title, and an NCAA title, which she captured at Baylor in 2012.

‘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,’ Griner said in her December statement.