A case for freedom: The detainment of Brittney Griner

Picture this: The NBA season is about to start and the Los Angeles Lakers are opening the season. One would naturally expect LeBron James to be present, an all-time legend of the game and a veteran of 19 seasons. There is no doubt the sports world would greatly miss the presence of LeBron James if he were to be absent from the game. Even more so, if LeBron James were a political prisoner of the Russian government…

Picture this exact scenario, but replace LeBron James with Brittney Griner. A similar situation is currently playing out in the Women’s National Basketball Association. Brittney Griner is a WNBA champion (2014), a seven-time all-star and an Olympic athlete, winning gold medals in Rio de Janeiro and Tokyo (2016 and 2020). Currently, Brittney Griner is being detained by the Russian government for possession of hashish oil, which comes from cannabis. Griner’s situation sent waves throughout the sports world, both here in the United States and across the globe. 

This whole situation started on Feb. 17. Griner was traveling back to Russia, where she has spent the past eight offseasons as a Russian Premier League player. It would be set off as Griner passed through security at Sheremetyevo International Airport in Khimki. What Griner believed would be a brief security check turned out to be the start of her captivity in Russia. 

What made this situation significantly more complicated were the corresponding actions of Russian President Vladimir Putin. He would declare war on Ukraine, using the cover of a “special military operation” on Feb. 24, one week after Griner’s initial detainment. Plans on how she would navigate the situation began on March 23. Ned Price, the U.S. State Department spokesperson officially recognized the acts of Russia as war crimes the same day and assured the media that Griner was doing well, despite the circumstances.

In May, the State Department would officially recognize Griner as “wrongfully detained.” After this announcement, public support for Griner’s case would increase, with the WNBA most notably painting her number 42 on all courts’ sidelines to start the season. In May, momentum would halt as Russia furthered her detention till June 28th. 

As the world watched, Griner’s fans and loved ones back home were doing all they could to advocate her release. While appreciative of the support they had already received, Brittney Griner’s wife Cherelle Griner told Good Morning America’s Robin Roberts that she wanted more direct action from U.S. President Joe Biden.

“I just keep hearing that, you know, he has the power,” Cherelle said. “She’s a political pawn. So if they’re holding her because they want you to do something, then I want you to do it”. 

In June, three months after the initial detainment, NBA players would begin to publicly call attention to Griner’s case as the NBA Finals went on. NBA champion Stephen Curry told reporters, “She needs to be home, she needs to be safe, she needs to be with her family.” Russia would extend her detainment for a third time and, to everyone’s displeasure, a fourth time. She was later notified that her trial would begin on July 1. 

On the Fourth of July, Griner would directly reach out to Joe Biden pleading for him to take immediate action. In a written letter delivered to him, Griner would say, “As I sit here in a Russian prison, alone with my thoughts and without the protection of my wife, family, friends, Olympic jersey, or any accomplishment, I’m terrified I might be here forever”. Three days later, Griner would plead guilty in a Russian court on drug charges. 

Tragically, on August 4, Griner would be found guilty on drug charges and sentenced to nine years in prison. The news would send Griner, her loved ones, friends and the United States in dismay. Biden would respond to the ruling claiming, “My administration will continue to work tirelessly and pursue every possible avenue to bring Brittney and Paul Whelan home safely as soon as possible”, per ABC News. 

Ten days after the trial initially started, a senior Russian diplomat confirmed that prisoner exchange talks between the U.S. and Russia were underway. In exchange for Griner and Paul Whelan, the U.S. offered the return of convicted Russian arms dealer, Viktor Bout, nicknamed the “Merchant of Death.”  

While not outright denying the trade request, the Kremlin claimed they would prefer Griner’s trial to run its course. Additionally, Moscow is currently pressing for the release of an additional Russian prisoner from the U.S. 

This takes us to the present day: Griner has now been detained in Russia for over 200 days. The future still remains uncertain, but Biden and the rest of his staff are working as hard as they can to get a deal done. While that work continues, Griner remains captive in Russia.

Most recently, Dennis Rodman tried flying to Russia to persuade Russian officials to release Griner. The former Chicago Bulls forward has a history of befriending controversial world figures. In 2014, Rodman would go as far as to call Vladimir Putin “cool”, after meeting the Russian president at a restaurant. Not long after expressing a desire to rescue Griner, Price would assure Rodman that he would not be traveling to Russia on behalf of the United States if he were to go. Shortly after, Rodman would tell ABC News he had no plans to travel to Russia. Outside of Rodman’s theatrics, there have been no recent updates regarding the fate of Griner at the time of writing this. 

The former first overall pick and league MVP will face this crisis, as she has faced everything else in her life: with great courage, commitment and hard work.