Brittney Griner to sign with Atlanta Dream
Out WNBA veteran Brittney Griner is signing a one-year deal with the Atlanta Dream, she announced in an Instagram video Jan. 28, marking an end to her 11-season run with the Phoenix Mercury. “So free agency has been everything I wanted it to be,” Griner said in an Instagram video while aboard a fishing boat. … Read More
Out WNBA veteran Brittney Griner is signing a one-year deal with the Atlanta Dream, she announced in an Instagram video Jan. 28, marking an end to her 11-season run with the Phoenix Mercury.
"So free agency has been everything I wanted it to be," Griner said in an Instagram video while aboard a fishing boat. "I was able to find where I wanted to go. And honestly, what led me to that decision ultimately was the team, the players, as individuals, and then also my family."
Free agents cannot sign contracts until Feb. 1, which explains why the deal is not yet finalized.
The career change represents the first time Griner has switched WNBA teams in her career, though she has played on several international teams in the off-season. Describing it as a “hard decision” to leave Phoenix, Griner acknowledged that there is an “exciting factor of like, OK, this is a rebrand now, I get to show them something different."
Griner, a 10-time all-star, has built a legendary WNBA career, winning a title in 2014 and securing All-WNBA First Team honors three times. She also has three Olympic gold medals stemming from her role on the US women's national team.
The 34-year-old center missed the 2022 season after she was arrested in Russia on trumped-up drug charges just days before the Kremlin launched its invasion of Ukraine. Griner was held as a political prisoner until President Joe Biden secured her release in exchange for Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout in 2023.
In 2024, Griner averaged 17.8 points, 6.6 rebounds, 2.3 assists, and 1.5 blocks per game over 30 games in her final season with the Mercury.
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