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“My Time in Russia Has Been Wonderful”: At the Forefront of Brittney Griner Rescue Campaign, WNBA’s Breanna Stewart Makes Honest Confession

Published 09/24/2022, 8:30 PM EDT

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WNBA star Brittney Griner has been detained in Russia for more than seven months now. And things have not improved much for her so far. Earlier this year, he was arrested at an airport in Moscow for carrying vape cartridges with cannabis oil. It is illegal in Russia and she was charged for carrying drugs. Griner pleaded guilty, however, explained that she did not intend to break the law. And it was because of medical purposes only. But she was sentenced to nine years by a Russian court.

Ever since her arrest, players in the WNBA have been showing their support for her. Even though she broke the law on foreign soil, many celebrities feel that the sentencing is too harsh. The U.S. government has designated her as “wrongfully detained” and are working on a plan to bring the towering center back home. However, things have not changed much so far. Recently, President Joe Biden met with Griner’s wife Cherelle and reassured her about the efforts to bring Griner back.

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While Making USA Proud Overseas, WNBA Legend’s “216 Days” Comment on Brittney Griner Wins Over NBA World Yet Again

As per reports, the government had made a “substantial” offer to Russia a while ago. The Phoenix Mercury star missed the whole of the recently concluded WNBA season.

WNBA shows support for Brittney Griner

The Las Vegas Aces won the title in the recently concluded WNBA season. In the offseason, most players look to play abroad to earn more money. The WNBA’s supermax salary for 2022 was $228,094. And Russia has been one of the hot spots for WNBA players to earn more. But the Brittney Griner situation has changed things. Now, the players are looking to play off-season basketball in other countries.

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WNBA star Breanna Stewart recently talked about it. “Honestly my time in Russia has been wonderful,” Stewart said. “But especially with BG still wrongfully detained there, nobody’s going to go there until she’s home.”

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She was a former teammate of Griner playing for the Russian team UMMC Ekaterinburg. The club is one of the most successful clubs in Russia. UMMC Ekaterinburg has won 15 Russian championships since 2002. They also have won nine Russian cups since 2005. Additionally, they have bagged six Euro League Women’s championships since 2003.

It has been a huge attraction for foreign players for years. This off-season, Stewart plans to play for the Turkish team Fenerbahce. It would be interesting to see if any WNBA player opts to play in Russia in the upcoming season.

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Written by:

Bagavathi Eswaran

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Bagavathi Eswaran is an NBA writer at EssentiallySports. He has been playing the game of basketball for more than 20 years now and has also been following the NBA for more than 10 years. After not being able to go pro, this former college player decided to join the IT industry.
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