42 seconds of silence to honor WNBA star, Brittney Griner

By: Brad Chen

Instead of doing their usual pre-game shot around, the entire Phoenix Mercury basketball team silently awaited the sentence of their teammate Brittney Griner, who was detained in Russia for accidentally packing hashish oil in her luggage.

The team painfully watched as their fellow teammate received a devastating 9 years in prison.

The team was in a terrible mood before the game. “This is our real-life friend, real-life sister,” said Skylar Diggins-Smith, the point guard for the Mercury, who also added, “Nobody even wanted to play today. How are we even supposed to approach the game and approach the court with a clear mind when the whole group is crying before the game?”

In a video tweeted by the WNBA, the whole stadium had 42 (Griner’s jersey number) seconds of silence to honor Griner, chanting “bring her back!” and “BG”. Some also wore shirts that said, “We are BG”.

The Mercury lost to the Connecticut Suns 64-77, missing their star center and their much-needed peace of mind.