The WNBA landscape was shaken up Tuesday. First, the Phoenix Mercury traded for Connecticut Sun star Alyssa Thomas. Then, longtime Mercury star center Brittney Griner decided to leave Phoenix after 11 seasons to join the Atlanta Dream.
Amid news of her move, Griner took to Instagram to make her first post about her free agency decision. She shared a clip of herself riding a boat alongside her new teammates, Jordin Canada, Rhyne Howard and Allisha Gray.
In a stunning move, star free agent center Brittney Griner has agreed to a one-year deal with the Atlanta Dream, sources told ESPN.
After 11 seasons in Phoenix, 10-time WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner has agreed to a deal with the Atlanta Dream, sources tell me and @alexaphilippou. Griner spent her entire career with Mercury and now heads to Atlanta in one of most stunning free agency moves in league history. pic.twitter.com/NfdAuYOAVs
Brittney Griner’s time in Phoenix is over. The 10-time WNBA All-Star struck a one-year deal to join the Atlanta Dream in free agency Tuesday night, according to ESPN’s Shams Charania and Alexa Philippou. Specifics of the deal are not yet known. It will be made official after Saturday, when contracts across the league are allowed to be signed.
WNBA free agency has seen another big move, and it involves center Brittney Griner. The 11-year veteran, who has played her entire professional career with the Phoenix Mercury, is on the move.
Griner is the latest big name to move during the WNBA’s offseason, as she’ll leave the Mercury and head to Atlanta.
Brittney Griner has agreed to a one-year deal with the Atlanta Dream, ending her tenure with the Phoenix Mercury after 11 seasons, ESPN reported.
Griner was the No. 1 pick in the 2013 WNBA draft. In her 11 seasons in Phoenix, Griner averaged 17.7 points, 7.4 rebounds and 2.6 blocks in 30.4 minutes per game. She was named to 10 All-Star games, won two Defensive Player of the Year awards and was a two-time scoring champion.
Landing Brittney Griner was a big swing for the franchise, which was was “pounding the pavement" to get better in free agency.”
The Phoenix Mercury add a perennial MVP candidate in Alyssa Thomas, but lose one of the faces of the franchise to the Atlanta Dream