Legendary Baylor Bears women’s basketball player Brittney Griner has finally received the recognition she deserved from Baylor. Her jersey was officially retired on Sunday at Ferrell Center in Waco, Texas.
“Just full of emotion,” Griner told ESPN during the Bears’ game against Texas Tech. “As soon as (the jersey) started to go up, that’s when I started to break.”
When Griner played at Baylor, her coach was Kim Mulkey, who now coaches at LSU, but the new head coach at Baylor is the one who stood beside her at the jersey retirement and pushed for the retirement. Head coach Nicki Collen knew it was something that needed to be done for Griner and the entire Baylor community.
Griner had a strained relationship with Baylor since playing there and being drafted by the Mercury as the No. 1 overall pick in the 2013 WNBA draft. It was reported that Mulkey told Griner to keep her sexual identity private. However, head coach Collen made it a priority to fix the relationship between the school and Griner and has been an avid supporter of Griner since she took the job at Baylor three years ago.
“Knowing BG, knowing her, being around her, she’s a big kid,” Collen said about Griner in 2022. “To know her is to love her. I mean, honestly, she just is one of those people that radiates joy.”
See the best photos from the retirement ceremony: