Before she discovered basketball, WNBA player Brittney Griner thought she would be in the military or a police officer. After all, her father served in Vietnam as a Marine and later became a sheriff’s officer in Texas. She has always loved her country even while peacefully protesting injustices she observes and has experienced.
“My dad was law enforcement 30 years, military Vietnam ’68-69 Marine, so I mean, being able to represent my country means a lot,” Griner said last week. “Before ball, I actually wanted to actually go into the military, before I found basketball, so this is my way of still representing USA.”
So anytime she can represent her country, whether that be on the Olympic team or starting for the U.S. women’s national team exhibition game, she is all in for Team USA. On Sunday, Griner was met with thunderous applause when she was announced as a starter for the national team in their exhibition game against Tennessee.
“I actually talked to people that said they were coming specifically to see her and to watch her play,” Tennessee coach Kellie Harper said. “And they had become fans throughout her challenges in the last year or so, and I was really happy for that team to feel that from our fans.”
The national team’s next exhibition game will be at Duke on Nov. 12. This begins the preparations for the team’s 2024 Paris Olympics run. They are chasing their eighth straight Olympic gold medal.
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