Brittney Griner Calls 'Coming Home' to Baylor 'Exactly 2 Years After Being Detained' a 'Full Circle Moment'

Mar. 15, 2025

Brittney Griner.Photo:Ron Jenkins/Getty

Ron Jenkins/Getty

Brittney Grineris reflecting on her return to Baylor University.

On Monday, Griner, 33, penned an emotionalposton Instagram about her recent trip to her Waco, Texas, alma mater, whereher jersey now hangs in the raftersas the most decorated women’s basketball player in the history of the university.

“There is no feeling quite like COMING HOME,” Griner wrote, noting, “My career doesn’t get to where it’s at without Baylor.”

The Phoenix Mercury star continued, “COMING HOME to Baylor last week was such a full-circle moment. It was exactly two years after being detained in Russia, a time when I wondered whether I’d ever come home.”

Never miss a story — sign up forPEOPLE’s free daily newsletterto stay up-to-date on the best of what PEOPLE has to offer, from juicy celebrity news to compelling human interest stories.

US basketball player Brittney Griner, of the Phoenix Mercury, speaks during a news conference at the Footprint Center in Phoenix, Arizona on April 27, 2023.PATRICK T. FALLON/AFP via Getty

The WNBA star thanked Baylor, her college coach Nicki Collen “and every single staff and faculty member who made this moment possible” in the post. “It was so good to see you and I am forever honored. Looking forward to coming back home!”

Griner spent 10 months in Russia after being detained at an airport for allegedly having hash oil in her luggage in February 2022. By December, she wasreleased in a one-for-one prisoner swap for international arms dealer Viktor Bout, CBS News reported, citing a U.S. official.

US' Women’s National Basketball Association (NBA) basketball player Brittney Griner, who was detained at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo airport and later charged with illegal possession of cannabis, arrives to a hearing at the Khimki Court, outside Moscow on August 4, 2022. - Lawyers for US basketball star Brittney Griner, who is standing trial in Russia on drug charges, said on July 26, 2022 they hoped she would receive a “lenient” sentence.KIRILL KUDRYAVTSEV/AFP via Getty

Griner’s career at Baylor spanned a national championship in 2012, two Final Four appearances and six Big 12 conference championships.

Over the course of four seasons, the Houston native scored 3,283 points and pulled down 1,305 rebounds. She also recorded the school’s first triple-double and holds Big 12 records in points scored (3,283), field goals made (1,247), free throws made (787) and attempted (1,054) and blocks (748).

Griner still holds the NCAA blocks record for a season (223) and career. She is also the only player in NCAA women’s basketball history to have over 2,000 career points and 500 career blocks. Out of 148 games she played, Griner scored in double figures for all but two of them.

Brittney Griner #42 of the Baylor Bears reacts in the first half against the Stanford Cardinal during the National Semifinal game of the 2012 NCAA Division I Women’s Basketball Championship at Pepsi Center on April 1, 2012.Doug Pensinger/Getty

Doug Pensinger/Getty

Earlier this month, Griner announced that her upcoming memoir, which will detail her time in Russia,will be titledComing Homeand will hit stores this spring.

“Coming Homeis a story of hope and survival, of before and after,” Griner said in a statement. “Before, on my way to Russia, a place I’ve called my second home, I was excited to win another title. For eight seasons I played there, won there and lived there for long stretches. A short time later and a world away, I woke up in an after I’d wish on no one.”

source: people.com