In a league where 18 out of 36 players are out as LGBTQ+, Unrivaled is just the beginning of many more groundbreaking and exciting things to come for queer athletes. For queer womenâs basketball superfans whoâve long been shooting their shots or newbies who are breaking their ankles to learn all the lore about one of the gayest professional sports leagues, weâre highlighting all the GOated things about its queer players that make them the greatest. This week, weâre spotlighting one of the most decorated and dominant players of the league, Brittney Griner, aka BG.
Balling at Baylor
As an incoming six-foot-nine freshman at Baylor University, Griner quickly proved herself to be a player to watch. She won the leagueâs Freshman of the Year and Defensive Player of the Year honors in 2010, only to go on and sweep the Player and Defensive Player of the Year Awards in 2011, 2012, and 2013 like it was nothing. She finished her legendary college career with 3,283 points and 1,305 rebounds. Despite being one of the most decorated student-athletes at Baylor, Griner had a complicated relationship with her Baptist alma mater. She spoke out against the schoolâs policies that prevented her from being open about her identity as a lesbian a year after she left the college in 2014. She retired her iconic No.42 jersey at Baylor in February of 2024, which she described as a âfull-circle moment.â A school that once didnât fully embrace her now acknowledged her as a part of Baylor Bear history.
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Golden Griner
Still thriving and shattering records, thereâs no doubt Griner is one of the most dominant centers in WNBA history. Her impressive shot-blocking and basketball scoring abilities have made her the lead of the league eight times. As a two-time WNBA Defensive Player of the Year, 10-time WNBA All-Star, and three-time Olympic gold medalist, she has averaged 17.7 points, 7.4 rebounds, and 2.6 blocked shots. Drafted first overall in the 2013 WNBA Draft by the Phoenix Mercury, sheâs spent her entire career playing in Phoenix but has recently made a free-agency decision. In an Instagram post, Griner announced she will be signing with the Atlanta Dream for one year, a decision that will be made official on February 1 During this off-season, sheâs playing on the Phantom team in Unrivaled. Phoenix will miss BG, but this new chapter in her career will be an exciting rebrand.
Baby Bash
On July 8, 2024, Griner and her wife, Cherelle, welcomed their first child Bash into the world. This new chapter of her life as a parent has made her vocal about embracing non-traditional parenting roles, where she shared she prefers to be called âpopsâ by Bash, rather than âmom.â Sheâs also been open in sharing the emotional difficulty of being away from her newborn because of her traveling career as an athlete. Newly posted content of the couple and their baby on Instagram has been heartwarming and has left fans awe-ing about this couple’s new parenting era.Â
Pioneer of Change
In February of 2022 at a Moscow Airport, Griner was arrested after a search of her luggage revealed vape cartridges containing cannabis. She was sentenced to nine years in a Russian labor camp, where her case received global attention. WNBA players started online movements calling for her release, and the WNBA Players Association said in a statement, âShe is very clearly a hostage.â Griner was finally released after spending nearly 10 months in prison and continues to advocate for other American prisoners wrongfully detained overseas.
Author Era
When sheâs not on the court, Griner is putting pen to paper. Her first book, released in 2014, In My Skin: My Life On and Off the Basketball Court, details her life as an athlete and activist in the WNBA. Her second book, Coming Home, was recently released in 2024 and details the dehumanizing and traumatizing conditions she experienced during her ten months in the Russian labor camp. These New York Times bestselling books are a must-read. Grinerâs willingness to be vulnerable and share her harrowing story proves she has always been bigger than basketball.
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