Getty Los Angeles Lakers forward LeBron James.
Since February 17, 2022, WNBA superstar Brittney Griner has been detained in Russia as she faces drug charges. There’s been a groundswell of support in America to get the Houston, Texas native back to the states but there’s been little movement. Many of the NBA’s biggest names have come out urging the United States government to figure out how to get Griner home, including Los Angeles Lakers star LeBron James.
Considering players like LeBron and many others have played overseas in the past, this is a situation that hits close to home. There’s been a lot of uncertainty regarding Griner’s situation and she could face five to 10 years in prison, per Interfax. As the White House tries to find a solution, LeBron is now questioning why Griner isn’t back yet.
On a preview for the next episode of “The Shop,” the Lakers star suggested that he wouldn’t even want to live in America if he were put in Griner’s position.
“Now, how can she feel like America has her back? I would be feeling like, ‘Do I even want to go back to America?’” LeBron said of Griner.
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LeBron Gets Push Back for Comments
Now, it’s important to note that LeBron’s comments come from a brief preview shared on social media. There could be much more context to the comments and he could’ve offered more clarification. However, that didn’t stop many people on Twitter from coming out against the superstar.
Clay Travis of Outkick referred to LeBron as a “professional idiot” for his comments.
LeBron James, professional idiot, says he would question ever returning to the United States if he’d been arrested in Russia like Brittany Griner.
Travis has been critical of LeBron’s politics in the past so this attack doesn’t come out of nowhere. The future Hall of Famer has been known to cause a stir with his political comments. LeBron is clearly frustrated that a fellow basketball star is facing prison time overseas and it has to be concerning.
Griner’s Coach Believes She’d Be Back if She Was LeBron
Griner has been one of the most dominant players in the WNBA for a long time. She’s an eight-time All-Star and champion. Her absence has been notable for the WNBA season as she was honored at the recent All-Star game. It’s difficult to fathom that such a notable player would be facing these issues.
Frustrations from many who know her are starting to show. Griner’s coach on the Phoenix Mercury Vanessa Nygaard is in disbelief that she’s been detained this long and thinks she’d already be back if she was LeBron.
“If it was Lebron, he’d be home, right?” Nygaard said. “It’s a statement about the value of women. It’s a statement about the value of a black person. It’s a statement about the value of a gay person.”
“All of those things. We know it, and so that’s what hurts a little more.”
The longer Griner is detained, the more frustration will begin to mount. LeBron is clearly trying to use his platform to help bring attention to the situation but sometimes his words bring more attention to him than the cause.
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