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WNBA star Brittney Griner made her return to the court for her first regular-season game since her 10-month detainment in Russia.
On Friday, the Phoenix Mercury center played her long-awaited season opener in an away game against Los Angeles Sparks.
Griner was arrested at a Moscow airport in February 2022 after Russian officials alleged her luggage contained vape cartridges with traces of cannabis oil. After spending 10 months in Russian custody, she was released as part of a high-profile prisoner swap.
The celebratory moment of Griner's return to the court brought out some big names, too.
Vice President Kamala Harris welcomed Griner at LA's Crypto.com Arena.
\u201cBrittney Griner\u2019s return to the court is an inspiration to our nation \u2013 and is a testament to her strength and courage.\u201d— Vice President Kamala Harris (@Vice President Kamala Harris) 1684674341
And Nike put up a massive billboard to commemorate the event.
\u201c#BGisBack \ud83e\udde1\n\nLive look at @nikebasketball\u2019s billboard outside of https://t.co/eVdfhDiduM Arena in honor of Brittney Griner\u2019s return to the floor\u201d— WNBA (@WNBA) 1684543223
While Griner's return to the game brought 10,396 fans to the venue - more than last year's average of around 5,700 - the arena was still barely at half capacity.
And the team's head coach Vanessa Nygaard was not impressed.
After Phoenix's 94-71 loss to LA, Nygaard said:
“I mean, it was great. But like honestly, c’mon LA. We didn’t sell out the arena for BG?"
"Like, I expected more, you know, to be honest. Right, it was great, it was loud."
"But how was it not a sellout? How was it not a sellout?”
You can watch below.
\u201cPhoenix Mercury head coach wants to know why Brittney Griner\u2019s debut didn\u2019t sell out the arena \ud83d\udc40\n\n\u201cHow was it not a sellout?\u201d\u201d— Sportsville (@Sportsville) 1684576845
Some on social media noted both the NHL and NBA are in the playoffs, now.
The LA Lakers—until their loss—were using the same arena for their post-season run, likely resulting in locals and fans opting for those tickets instead.
\u201c@Outkick Hmm, the Sparks in a meaningless game on Friday or the Lakers in the Western Conference Finals on a Saturday? So hard to choose.\u201d— OutKick (@OutKick) 1684755000
Others also expressed even though the arena wasn't sold out, they should be excited the night's attendance far surpassed the venue's average.
\u201c@YesThatVCharles According to the article, attendance for that game was about double their usual attendance, but just over half of a sold out arena. All things considered, it was pretty good attendance.\u201d— Vincent Charles: Rei Di Tutto, (Ret.) (@Vincent Charles: Rei Di Tutto, (Ret.)) 1684686487
\u201c@TiwannaRN42 Low turnout compared to what? The LA Sparks average about 5600 per game (about 19000 capacity). The attendance for this game was nearly double that. Seems good. Laker fans don't go to WNBA games any more than Dodger fans attend a WPF game. (Womens Professional Fastpitch)\u201d— Tiwanna Agbenyegah (@Tiwanna Agbenyegah) 1684782864
\u201c@OliLondonTV Honestly, selling 10k tickets was a major milestone for the league\u201d— Oli London (@Oli London) 1684684073
\u201c@dhookstead @Outkick 10k people went to a WNBA game???? Wow... thats almost double who normally attend. You'd think that would be a win\u201d— David Hookstead (@David Hookstead) 1684692691
And some claimed they were unaware of both the game and Griner's return.
Shining a spotlight on promotion, advertising, air time, etc... of men's versus women's sports.
\u201c@greg_price11 How much promotion was there? I didn't know she was playing until the game was over and showed up on the sports portion of the news.\u201d— Greg Price (@Greg Price) 1684630020
\u201c@Outkick To be fair I had no idea the game was on.\u201d— OutKick (@OutKick) 1684755000
In Griner's first home game this season—her first since October 2021—14,040 were in attendance to watch Mercury play against Chicago.
Griner got quite the welcome.
\u201cBrittney Griner was introduced before her first home game in 585 days.\n\nWhat a moment.\u201d— ESPN (@ESPN) 1684699890
Welcome home, Brittney.