Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner has gone viral for accusing the WNBA of apparent bias in favor of the Minnesota Lynx. She particularly highlighted the improper foul calls during games at the Lynx’s home turf.
Griner spoke up after Lynx star Napheesa Collier shared on her Instagram some pictures from the WNBA Finals Game 5 between their team and the New York Liberty, including some crucial foul calls in the final moments of the game.
Instagram user “Overtime WBB” re-shared a couple of photos from Collier’s post, to which Brittney Griner commented, “Anyone that watches the W knows when you play in Minnesota you not about to get any call!”
BG what u over here being messy for?😭😭😭😭 pic.twitter.com/sjBH2N3GIr
— ris | AU pili🔜 (@jckieyoung) October 21, 2024
Minnesota had a two-point lead with five seconds remaining in Game 5. The Liberty’s Breanna Stewart attempted a game-tying shot when the Lynx’s Alanna Smith made contact and fouled her.
Lynx coach Cheryl Reeve challenged the call as it seemed that the contact wasn’t illegal, but the call stood, allowing Stewart to tie the game with two free throws and send the game to overtime. When the match was finally over, it was the Liberty that came out on top and won the WNBA championship.
In Collier’s Instagram post, she highlighted the apparent lapse in judgment in favor of the now-champions. Brittney Griner, in her response to a fan, insinuates a “pot calling the kettle black” situation, as she feels like the games held in Minnesota favor the Lynx with the foul calls.
Ex-marine credits Brittney Griner for ‘great help’ in his release from Russia
Former US marine Paul Whelan credited Phoenix Mercury star Brittney Griner for providing “great help,” advocating for his release from Russian captivity after she herself was released.
“Within days of her (Griner) getting home, she was talking to people about how they could support me, and she had people making monetary donations, sending cards, sending letters, offering all sorts of support,” Whelan said in an interview with CBS on Sunday.
Whelan told “Face the Nation” host Margaret Brennan in his first media interview since his release that he became emotional when he saw Griner on TV playing in the Paris Olympics upon his arrival at Joint Base Andrews in Maryland.
“It was one of those incredible moments when you’re … finally connecting things,” Whelan said.
In February 2022, Brittney Griner found herself arrested in Russia after agents allegedly discovered vape canisters with cannabis oil in her luggage as she went to the country to play during the offseason. She received a nine-year prison sentence after pleading guilty to the drug charges.
Later that year, Brittney Griner was released along with marine veteran Trevor Reed in a prisoner exchange that had the American government surrender Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout and drug trafficker Konstantin Yaroshenko. The US said Russia refused to include Whelan in either release.
Griner played an active role in rallying support for the release of other detained Americans. In August of that year, Whelan was released alongside Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich.
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Dan has been active in sports since 2016 and has worked behind the scenes as a scriptwriter for basketball, volleyball, and other sports. At a time, Dan has also been working as a sports commentator for CBA Pilipinas. During the pandemic, he has also been actively writing betting articles for CashBet and BetNow.
