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WNBA star Brittney Griner is slowly returning to her normal life after spending 10 months in a Russian prison. According to her agent, the 32-year-old athlete was playing basketball on Dec. 11 at Fort Sam Houston in San Antonio, Texas Lindsay Kagawa Colawho said ESPN that Brittney’s first move on court was a dunk. Brittney’s representative, Bryce MarseeIn a statement, she gave an update on Brittney HollywoodLife.
“Our focus is on Brittney’s mental and physical health after what she has been through over the past nine months. We know she loves basketball and it’s one of the things that’s been taken away from her, but right now that’s not the main priority,” the rep told us.
Brittney lives with her wife in a hotel in Fort Sam Houston, Cherelle Grinersince she came home from Russia on December 9th. Brittney’s agent told ESPN that she hasn’t yet decided whether to return to her WNBA team, the Phoenix Mercury. “If she wants to play, she has to share it. She has the holidays to rest and decide what’s next without pressure,” Brittney’s agent explained. “She’s doing really, really well. She seems to have taken it in a pretty incredible way.” The agent also revealed that Brittney will likely release a statement about her future in basketball “this week.”
Instead of basketball, Brittney wants to focus on helping other Americans unjustly incarcerated in other countries, her agent told ESPN. One of the people Brittney wants to help is a former US Marine Paul Whelan, who is being held in Russia after being accused of espionage. president Joe Biden‘s government was unable to negotiate Paul’s release.
Brittney was arrested in March for possession of marijuana vape cartridges, shortly after Russia’s war with Ukraine began. She was tried and found guilty in August. Despite her lawyer’s appeal, she was sentenced to nine years in a Russian penal colony, where she was transferred in November before her release. Brittney’s detention in Russia had been protested, with many Americans calling for her release, as well as officials who spoke out for her.
On December 9, Brittney was photographed getting off a plane in San Antonio, Texas, where she reunited with her wife and parents. Brittney was released in exchange for the Russian arms dealer victor fight, who was arrested in 2008 for conspiring to kill Americans.
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