Her future is uncertain but the support for Brittney Griner as she sits in a Russian prison continues to grow.
Ahead of all-star weekend in Chicago, Brittney Griner’s wife, Cherelle, told reporters President Joe Biden wrote a letter back to Griner after the Mercury star told the White House she fears she’ll be in prison forever.
“It brought me so much joy, as well as BG,” said Cherelle on Friday. “He sees her as a person and he has not forgotten her, which was her biggest cry in her letter.”
Griner has been detained in Russia for more than 140 days.
She plead guilty on Thursday to drug charges after Russian officials found cannabis oil in her luggage.
Her legal team hopes the plea will lead to a lenient sentence, which could be up to 10 years.
Reverend Al Sharpton also spoke Friday, commending Grinder’s accountability to plead guilty.
“She’s a champion yesterday when she stood up and said, ‘I may have done something unintentional. I will own that,'” said Sharpton.
Those close to Griner have pointed out pay inequity led her to play in Russia in the first place.
In the NBA, the average salary is over $7 million. For WNBA players, the average salary is about $120,000.
“The question is, would Tom Brady be home? But Tom Brady wouldn’t be there, right? Because he doesn’t have to go to a foreign country to supplement his income from the WNBA,” said Phoenix Mercury head coach, Vanessa Nygaard.
Griner’s next trial is set for July 14.
