WNBA star Brittney Griner confronted by ‘provocateur’ in Dallas airport
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Brittney Griner (second from left) and her Phoenix Mercury teammates have started their WNBA season with a 1-5 record.
PHOTO: AFP
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WASHINGTON – Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA) star Brittney Griner, freed from a Russian prison in December,
A video clip posted on social media showed a man yelling at Griner, as she and her teammates walked past at Dallas-Fort Worth International Airport for a commercial flight to Indianapolis for a Sunday game.
Griner has had security personnel around her and charter flights approved for travel but she was with her teammates, who must take regular flights.
“Brittney Griner and the @WNBA players are leaders who inspire hope for a better, more inclusive and less-divided America,” said a statement issued by Griner’s agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas.
“They are celebrated for the ways their activism inspires positive change. In doing that, they also become targets for hate, threats and violence and today’s incident is a clear reminder of that.
“We cannot celebrate these women and their leadership without also protecting them. It’s past time for charters and enhanced security measures for all players.”
Griner missed all of last season after being arrested at an airport in Moscow in February 2022
Griner was sentenced to a nine-year prison term, as part of a US-Russia prisoner exchange.
“It has come to our attention that this was orchestrated by a social media figure and provocateur. His actions were inappropriate and unfortunate,” the WNBA said in a statement.
“The safety of Brittney Griner and all WNBA players is our top priority. Prior to the season, the WNBA worked together with the Phoenix Mercury and BG’s team to ensure her safety during her travel, which included charter flights for WNBA games and assigned security personnel with her at all times.
“We remain steadfastly committed to the highest standards of security for players.”
Griner’s Mercury teammate Brianna Turner addressed the incident on social media. “Player safety while traveling should be at the forefront,” she said.
“People following with cameras saying wild remarks is never acceptable. Excessive harassment. Our team nervously huddled in a corner unsure how to move about. We demand better.”
Brittney Griner (right) of the Phoenix Mercury during the first half of WNBA game at Footprint Center on June 2 in Phoenix, Arizona.
PHOTO: AFP
The Mercury were also looking into details of the incident and coordinating with the league regarding next steps.
“The health and well-being of our players and staff are our top priority and we will always take every step within our power to protect player safety,” the club said.
“We are committed to our support of BG and advocating for all American hostages abroad. We will continue our support of marginalised communities and fighting the kind of hate that targeted us today.
“No one, regardless of identity, should ever fear for their safety.”
Over in the men’s game, Toronto Raptors are set to hire Darko Rajakovic as their new head coach, according to multiple reports on Saturday.
The 44-year-old Serb would replace Nick Nurse, who was fired in April after the Raptors failed to reach the NBA play-offs. Nurse was hired as head coach of the Philadelphia 76ers earlier in June.
Rajakovic, who has been the assistant coach for the Memphis Grizzlies for the past three seasons, and the Raptors are hammering out contract details, unnamed sources told The Athletic and ESPN.
He spent 2012-14 as head coach for the Oklahoma City Thunder’s development team, then spent 2014-19 as an assistant coach for the NBA club. He joined the Phoenix Suns’ staff for one season before signing as an assistant coach with Memphis in September 2020.
In January 2022, Rajakovic served as an interim head coach of the Grizzlies, going 4-1 in his brief stint in the role. His hiring by Toronto would fill the last coaching vacancy in the league ahead of the June 22 NBA Draft. AFP
