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LAS VEGAS, NEVADA – JULY 15: Brittney Griner #42 of Team Stewart throws toy balls to fans after the 2023 WNBA All-Star Game at Michelob ULTRA Arena on July 15, 2023 in Las Vegas, Nevada.
(Photo by Ethan Miller/Getty Images)
Phoenix Mercury All-Star center Brittney Griner will not travel with the team on their two-game road trip against the Chicago Sky and Indiana Fever. The Phoenix Mercury issued a statement explaining Griner’s absence, according to ESPN. “The Mercury fully support Brittney and we will continue to work together on a timeline for her return,” Griner has been the lone bright spot on an otherwise underwhelming season for the Mercury as she has averaged 18.2 points, 6.7 rebounds and 1.7 blocks per game.
As the statement indicates, Griner’s leave does not have a defined return date. Griner had to deal with harassment from Alex Stein, a conservative media personality, at the Dallas Fort Worth airport earlier this season. Griner later called the incident “rock bottom” for the WNBA’s travel policy and the league’s players union released a statement calling for the league to reconsider chartered flights for every team so players could avoid situations like the one Griner and the Mercury were forced into. The statement reads, in part: “Every commercial flight forced upon our players is a threat to their health and safety. We implore the league and the teams not to wait another day to change the rule regarding travel.”
Source: Black Enterprise
