As Brittney Griner’s wrongful detention in Russia has galvanized the sports world in support of the WNBA star’s return to the United States, Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James questioned why Griner would want to return to a country that has taken so much time to aid in a resolution for her.
“Now, how can she feel like America has her back?” James said in a trailer for the latest episode of his talk show, “The Shop: Uninterrupted,” which airs on YouTube. “I would be feeling like, ‘Do I even want to go back to America?'”
James later tweeted Tuesday that his comments were not meant to disrespect “our beautiful country” but that he was stating how Griner was “probably feeling emotionally along with so many other emotions, thoughts, etc inside that cage she’s been in for over 100+ days!”
My comments on “The Shop” regarding Brittney Griner wasn’t knocking our beautiful country. I was simply saying how she’s probably feeling emotionally along with so many other emotions, thoughts, etc inside that cage she’s been in for over 100+ days! Long story short #BringHerHome
— LeBron James (@KingJames) July 13, 2022
Griner was arrested in Moscow in February after the Russian Federal Customs Service allegedly discovered vape pen cartridges containing hashish oil in a bag that belonged to her. Last week, Griner pleaded guilty to drug possession and will appear in court again Thursday.
In early June, shortly after the U.S. State Department classified Griner’s plight as a wrongful detention, James tweeted in support of the seven-time All-Star.
James’ Uninterrupted multimedia platform is also selling T-shirts with “We Are BG” printed on the front, with Uninterrupted’s online store stating that the proceeds from the merchandise will go to The BG Advocacy Fund, run by Griner’s family to cover legal costs associated with her release.
It is unclear when the episode, which will debut in its entirety Friday, was filmed. In the trailer, James mentions that Griner has been detained for more than 110 days — Griner’s timeline in Russia hit the 110-day mark nearly five weeks ago.
Last week, Griner’s coach on the Phoenix Mercury, Vanessa Nygaard, evoked James’ name in making a point about the country’s slow response to the center’s detainment.
“If it was LeBron, he’d be home, right?” Nygaard told reporters. “It’s a statement about the value of women. It’s a statement about the value of a Black person. It’s a statement about the value of a gay person. All of those things. We…
Click Here to Read the Full Original Article at www.espn.com – NBA…