WNBA Star Brittney Griner recently lost her appeal verdict in Russia. After she was sentenced to nine years in prison, Griner appealed against her sentence. And as expected by many experts, her appeal was rejected. Recently, NBA Legend Charles Barkley reacted to the major news.

Griner has been away from the country for over 240 days now. She was detained at a Moscow airport by customs officials, who found hashish oil in her vape cartridges. Griner was later arrested on charges of smuggling illegal substances which carry a maximum sentence of 10 years in Russia. She was subsequently put on trial.

The WNBA star admitted her guilt and she said that she made an honest mistake. Brittney Griner said she did not want to disrespect any laws, and she hoped the court showed her leniency. But the prosecutors demanded the maximum sentence for her. And the court found her guilty and sentenced her to nine years in prison.

Charles Barkley shares a thoughtful message for Brittney Griner

Griner had indicated that she was going to appeal her verdict at the start itself. And after months of waiting, a regional court set October 25th as the date for her hearing. But several experts expected that this appeal was going to be unsuccessful.

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Nevertheless, she tried her best in court. She admitted she made a mistake and said that people with more serious crimes have been given a lesser sentence. But the court rejected her appeal which means that her sentence will start soon. She is expected to spend her sentencing in a Russian penal colony, where conditions are expected to be very harsh.

Charles Barkley talked about the appeal recently in ‘The Steam Room’ podcast. He said, “Unfortunately, we heard the news about Brittney Griner today that she lost her appeal. You know, so man, I’m just thinking about her and her wife. And that’s a crazy situation. You’re dealing with a crazy person over there in Russia.”

“So I want to let her know that we were thinking about her. I know she had a birthday a couple of weeks ago, we acknowledged on the show. And just wishing her the best,” he added.

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Chuck and Ernie Johnson hoped that the US state department can work something out that gets Griner back home. But reports indicate this will take some time. Griner will be hoping that a deal goes down soon as she now begins her sentence.