“Coming home.” These two words were not just words but an emotion as Brittney Griner made a return to her homeland. While she has been in the US for over a year, only now has she really been able to talk about her “less than a human” experience. Before releasing her book based on her imprisonment experiences, the Mercury star opens up about how she coped through the horrible days that entailed guilt, pressure, and isolation. And amidst the thoughts of ending it all, she found one silver lining of hope that kept her going.

Recapping the incident, two years back, the customs agents at Moscow airport detained Griner on drug charges and for breaking Russian laws. Serving her penalty, despite pleading it to be an accident, the Russian government transferred her to the female penal colony IK-2 Yavas. Through the thick punishments to the freezing weather conditions, Griner found a friend. Her loyal cellmate, Alana.

Talking to Robin Roberts of the Good Morning America, she said, “Everyone knew ‘The American’ that was my title. Or ‘the basketball player,’ that was also my title. Alana would literally translate everything.” Adding more praises to her prison mate, Brittney Griner recounted, “I wouldn’t have made it without Alana.”

However, not everyone that she thought of as a friend, was one. In fact, Brittney Griner was one of the most valuable inmates that the other prisoners could take advantage of.

Brittney Griner and her “snitch” friend

It is a common thing to see one inmate leak personal information about another to the guards for favors in a movie. However, the 2017 Russian Cup winner, was living it. Turned out, her other cellmate Olya had been spying on the 2x Olympic gold medalist since the first day. Griner, along with Alana, found out about Olya’s diary when she was away. Talking about that particular moment when she read her name in the journal, she said, “My name, in English, was on page after page. So was Alana’s. She’d kept notes on dozens of our conversations, dating back to our first day in the room”.

However, the two friends later faced Olya and got her out of the cell. Eventually, Brittney Griner was exchanged in a highly controversial swap. The convicted Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout was sent back to his country for the 2014 WNBA champion. While she used to call Russia her other home after she helped them win 5 championship titles, Griner found the ugly side of the country. Although that was the last year for her to play with UMMC Ekaterinburg anyway, the tragic incident made her stay in the US ever since.