Brittney Griner opens up on arrest, imprisonment in Russia

Phoenix Mercury star center Brittney Griner is opening up about what she calls her "mental lapse" that led to her near-10-month imprisonment in Russia in 2022.

During an interview with ABC's Robin Roberts (set to air at 10 p.m. ET on Wednesday), Griner discusses what happened leading up to her February 2022 arrest at a Moscow-area airport when authorities found less than one gram of hashish oil in vape canisters in her luggage.

According to a report by Jenna West of The Athletic, the eight-time All-Star said in the interview that she got up late the morning of her flight to Russia, where she played for UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA offseason. Griner said she was rushed in packing her suitcase, which was usually not the case.

Per West's report, Roberts "pointed out that some people may criticize Griner and ask her how she didn’t know she packed the cartridges." Notably, a doctor prescribed cannabis to the 33-year-old for chronic pain and medical marijuana is legal in Phoenix.

“I would say, have you ever forgot your keys in your car?” Griner said. “Where’s my glasses? They’re on top of your head. Where’s my phone? Oh, it’s in my pocket. It’s just so easy to have a mental lapse. Granted, my mental lapse was on a more grand scale, but it doesn’t take away from how that can happen.”

According to the report, the former Baylor star told Roberts that she "could just visualize everything (she) worked so hard for just crumbling and going away."

“How did I make this mistake? How was I this absentminded?” Griner recalled thinking to herself when the cartridges were discovered.

In May 2022, the U.S. government declared that she was being wrongfully detained.

Griner was put on trial in July that year, pleaded guilty and explained to the judge that she unintentionally packed the hashish oil while packing for Russia.

The two-time Defensive Player of the Year was convicted on drug smuggling and possession charges and sentenced to nine years in prison.

Griner explained that she had a blood-stained mattress with two thin sheets and her lower legs hung off her bed through the bars of her cell during her imprisonment. Griner said she didn't always have toilet paper and was given toothpaste that expired around 15 years ago.

“We used to put (the toothpaste) on the black mold to kill the mold on the walls,” Griner said.

According to West's report, she was moved to a Russian penal colony in November 2022 and worked cutting fabric for Russian military uniforms.

"You go there to work. There’s no rest,” Griner said of the penal colony, where she cut her dreadlocks. “My dreads started to freeze. They would just stay wet and cold and I was getting sick. You’ve gotta do what you’ve gotta do to survive.”

Following months of negotiations with Russia, President Joe Biden and the White House agreed to a one-for-one prisoner swap for convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout on Dec. 8, 2022. This was 294 days after Griner was first detained.

The former No. 1 overall pick rejoined the Mercury for the 2023 season and made her eighth All-Star team. Griner re-signed with Phoenix in April for the 2024 campaign.

Griner's memoir "Coming Home," which details her imprisonment in Russia, is set to be released on Tuesday.