Brittany Griner has been held against her will in Russia for close to a year now, ever since she was found with a small amount of cannabis oil on her way to the country in February. Having any kind of marijuana is illegal in the country and so Griner was immediately detained at the airport.
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Griner had become quite acquainted with Russia over the years as she, along with a bevy of other WNBA stars, would play in the country for millions of dollars during the offseason. Since having started playing in Russia, she’s earned a reported total of $1.5 million.
The most she’s ever made from a single season in the WNBA has never cross $300,000 and so playing overseas is quite important, even for superstars in the women’s league. Unfortunately for the All-Star center, negotiations between the US and Russia have not gone in a positive direction.
Also read: Brittney Griner Towers Over Former WWE World Heavyweight Champion in Rare Picture
Andrew Schulz had a wild take on Brittney Griner and it involved Michael Jordan
For several months now, the United States Secretary of State, Anthony Blinken, has been in talks with Russia over a potential prisoner swap. This would allow Brittney Griner to return home in exchange for a notorious arms dealer serving a 25-year sentence.
As said above, negotiations have not led to anything fruitful as of yet. Comedian and podcaster, Andrew Schulz, made light of this situation earlier this year as he compared Griner situation to a hypothetical one where instead of her, it would’ve been either Michael Jordan or LeBron James stranded in Russia.
According to Schulz, not only would US have pulled out all of the stops to get back the two greatest basketball players of all time, they might’ve gone as far as used nuclear warfare.
Of course, the latter was a joke but the hypothetical still stands as one that makes sense in a way. Both Jordan and LeBron are two of the most important cultural figures of the last 40 years in the North American sporting realm. Not getting them back would certainly paint the States in a weaker light.
Where do the Brittney Griner negotiations stand currently?
As of now, it has been reported by United States officials that Russia has failed to operate in ‘good faith’. Despite the fact they would getting back a valued arms dealer (Viktor Bout) back in return, Griner doesn’t seem to be coming back to the US anytime soon.
It should be noted that Blinken and his staff are also working on getting back Paul Whelan, a man who had gone to Russia for a friend’s wedding. He unfortunately had been detained by the country on charges of espionage and placed in jail on a 16 year sentence.
Also read: What Did Brittney Griner Do? Is the WNBA Star Still in Russia?
