Brittney Griner tells Megan Rapinoe ‘screw the championships’ because becoming a mom will be ‘the highest peak of my life’ after her Russian prison nightmare

After her nightmare experience of being locked up in Russia in 2022, Brittney Griner insists that becoming a mother will peak any championship she wins or has won on the basketball court.

The WNBA star was imprisoned by Russian authorities after a vape cartridge containing small amounts of CBD oil was spotted in her bag at an airport. Griner was detained for 293 days before her wife Cherelle Griner’s efforts to get her home materialized.

17 months since returning Stateside on a prisoner swap, Griner spoke with USWNT legend Megan Rapinoe about her excitement as she and Cherelle prepare to welcome their son in the coming months.

‘Screw the championships and all the trophies and all that; that’s going to be the highest peak of my life right there,’ Griner said about motherhood.

‘I can’t wait to go fishing and off-roading and teach them everything my dad taught me, them coming to me for advice and watching them learn something or figure something out for the first time. That’s going to be the biggest joy.’

WNBA star Brittney Griner admits becoming a mom will be the ‘highest peak’ of her life

Griner spoke to Megan Rapinoe about motherhood and being locked up in Russia in 2022

Griner and her wife Cherelle are expecting their son Bash Raymond in the coming months

Cherelle led the efforts to bring Brittney back to the United States after her arrest

Additionally, Griner shared how she and Cherelle decided to have a baby after she got home from being locked up abroad. While detailing why she’s glad they were not pregnant while she was overseas, Griner admits the incident was a wake-up call for her.

‘We had talked about having kids before this happened,’ Griner said. I’m glad we waited because it would’ve destroyed me even more — destroyed us even more — if we had a little one back here while she’s fighting to try to get me out. But when I got back, we were like, ‘Tomorrow’s not guaranteed. We need to stop playing around with time. We need to do this.”

‘We wanted a new chapter of our life. I knew I was going to be done with playing overseas, so we pulled the gun on it,’ she continued. ‘We’ve got a little boy on the way, Bash Raymond Griner, and I’m super excited for this next chapter of my life.

‘Anybody who knows me knows I love kids. I’ve always been right there with my nieces, my nephews. I just love family time. The country, down South side of me comes out.’

Griner was arrested by Russian authorities over a vape cartridge containing CBD

Griner was locked up for 293 days before a prisoner swap for Viktor Bout brought her home

After winning the NCAA title with Baylor in 2012, Griner was selected by the Phoenix Mercury in 2013. The following year, she helped Phoneix win the 2014 WNBA championship.

Additionally, Griner has led the WNBA in scoring twice and blocks on eight separate occasions while making nine All-Star and six All-NBA selections. Naturally, Griner openly admitted she would encourage her son to pick up the basketball.

‘Baby Bash, I hope, will play basketball,’ Griner shared. ‘I just want them to play something! They could do art, sports, whatever. Would I be very happy if it was basketball? Of course.’