Brittney Griner will return to the WNBA for the 2023 season after reportedly signing a one-year deal with the Phoenix Mercury following a 10-month detainment in Russia.

Griner was arrested at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport in February 2023 for bringing under a gram of cannabis oil into Russia in vape cartridges.

The two-time Olympic gold medallist said she made an "honest mistake", with her lawyers arguing she was using the cannabis for medicinal purposes and was unaware of its illegal status in Russia.

She was subsequently jailed for nine years for drug possession and drug smuggling with criminal intent, but was released in December in a prisoner exchange that saw convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout return to Russia.

Griner stated she planned to play for the Mercury in 2023 following her return to the United States, and the team have reportedly agreed a deal for the eight-time WNBA All-Star to feature in the upcoming season.

Griner was drafted first overall by the Mercury in 2013, going on win the 2014 WNBA championship by sweeping the Chicago Sky in the finals.

Her last game for the team before her imprisonment also came against the Sky in a 2021 WNBA finals defeat after one of the best seasons of her career, during which she averaged 20.5 points, 1.9 blocks and 9.5 rebounds per game.

Griner will look to help the Mercury bounce back after suffering a first-round exit in the WNBA Playoffs in August, with the team set to begin their 2023 campaign against the Los Angeles Sparks on May 19.

Brittney Griner intends to play in the WNBA next season, having returned to the United States following her release from a Russian prison.

Griner was arrested at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport on February 17 for bringing under a gram of cannabis oil into Russia in vape cartridges.

The two-time Olympic gold medallist said she made an "honest mistake", while her lawyers argued she was using cannabis for medicinal purposes and was unaware cannabis oil was outlawed in Russia.

Griner was subsequently jailed for nine years for drug possession and drug smuggling with criminal intent, but she was released in a prisoner exchange that saw convicted arms dealer Viktor Bout return to Russia last week.

In a statement posted to her Instagram account on Friday, the eight-time WNBA All-Star confirmed she plans to play for the Phoenix Mercury in 2023.

"It feels so good to be home! The last 10 months have been a battle at every turn," Griner said.

"I dug deep to keep my faith and it was the love from so many of you that helped keep me going. From the bottom of my heart, thank you to everyone for your help.

"I also want to make one thing very clear: I intend to play basketball for the WNBA's Phoenix Mercury this season.

"In doing so, I look forward to being able to say 'thank you' to those of you who advocated, wrote, and posted for me in person soon."

In her social media post, Griner also thanked those who had advocated for her release, including "the Phoenix Mercury, the players of the WNBA and my entire WNBA family", as well as US president Joe Biden.

When announcing Griner's return, Biden said the 32-year-old had been "unjustly detained" and described the conditions she endured as "intolerable".

The Phoenix Mercury suffered a first-round exit in the WNBA Playoffs in August and are set to begin their 2023 campaign against the Los Angeles Sparks on May 19.

Brittney Griner has been released from Russian prison and the two-time basketball Olympic gold medallist will be back in America in the next 24 hours, US president Joe Biden said.

At the White House, President Biden confirmed he had spoken to 32-year-old Griner, who was arrested at Moscow's Sheremetyevo International Airport on February 17 for bringing under a gram of cannabis oil into Russia in vape cartridges.

That was shortly before Russia invaded Ukraine, weakening diplomatic relations with the US, and eight-time WNBA All-Star Griner was jailed for nine years in August for drug possession and drug smuggling with criminal intent.

Griner said she made an "honest mistake", and her lawyers argued she was using cannabis for medicinal purposes to treat chronic pain sustained over the course of her career.

They said she was not aware cannabis oil was outlawed in Russia.

Reports in the United States said Griner had been freed in a prisoner exchange that has seen arms dealer Viktor Bout released into Russian hands.

President Biden said Griner had been "unjustly detained in Russia", describing circumstances she endured as "intolerable".

"Brittney will soon be back in the arms of her loved ones, and she should have been there all along," Biden said. "This is a day we've worked towards for a long time."

Biden said there had been "painstaking and intense negotiations". He said recent months had been "hell for Brittney" and stressed efforts were ongoing to free former US Marine Paul Whelan, who is in a Russian jail after being convicted in 2020 on espionage charges.

Biden said Phoenix Mercury player Griner was "in good spirits" and "relieved to be heading home" after enduring "needless trauma".

She was "wrongfully detained" in the first place, Biden said, and he added: "She endured mistreatment and a show trial in Russia with characteristic grit and incredible dignity.

"She wrote to me back in July, she didn't ask for special treatment, even though we'd been working on her release since day one."

Griner's wife Cherelle appeared alongside Biden and said: "Over the last nine months y'all have been so privy to one of the darkest moments of my life."

She said news of Griner's release left her "overwhelmed with emotions", and she offered "sincere gratitude" to Biden and his administration.

"Today it's just a happy day for me and my family," she added.

LeBron James has criticised the United States government for its handling of WNBA star Brittney Griner's imprisonment in Russia. 

James addressed the issue in a trailer for his online talk show, "The Shop: Uninterrupted."

"Now, how can she feel like America has her back?" the Los Angeles Lakers forward said. "I would be feeling like, 'Do I even want to go back to America?'"

The episode will air in its entirety Friday on YouTube.

Griner, a seven-time WNBA All-Star with the Phoenix Mercury, was arrested in Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport on February 17 for carrying vape cartridges that allegedly contained cannabis products. 

Last week, Mercury coach Vanessa Nygaard referenced James in her plea for officials to act more quickly. 

"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 sports community has continued to advocate for Griner's return to the U.S. over the last five months, but she remains in Russian custody while the war in Ukraine continues to cause tension between Washington and Moscow.

The WNBA held its All-Star Game Sunday in Chicago, with Griner’s detention receiving plenty of attention. Players on both teams wore Griner’s No. 42 and name on their jerseys during the second half.

In recent weeks, both Griner and her wife Cherelle have had correspondence with President Joe Biden, but the administration has not publicly declared a plan for her return. 

Griner entered a guilty plea last Thursday in Russian court, saying she packed the cartridges accidentally. ESPN reported over the weekend that Griner’s plea could be part of a strategy to facilitate a prisoner exchange that could also include former U.S. Marine Paul Whelan, who is also being detained in Russia. 

In June, the U.S. State Department classified Griner as being wrongfully detained. 

Secretary of State Antony Blinken has reiterated that returning the prisoners to the U.S. remains a priority.

"We will not relent until Brittney, Paul Whelan and all other wrongfully detained Americans are reunited with their loved ones," Blinken said on Twitter last week. 

A phone call between jailed WNBA star Brittney Griner and her wife Cherelle is being rescheduled after a failed attempt to connect on their anniversary, due to an "unfortunate" mistake.

The couple had not spoken since Griner's drug-related arrest in February, but attempts to connect through the United States Embassy in Russia were hindered since the phone line at the embassy was not staffed.

On Monday, it was discovered Griner tried to call 11 times over a period of several hours, dialling a number she had been given to patch the call through to her wife in Phoenix, but each call was left unanswered due to the unstaffed desk on Saturday.

US State Department spokesman Ned Price apologised for the "logistical error", confirming a rescheduled call will take place.

"We deeply regret that Brittney Griner was unable to speak with her wife over the weekend because of a logistical error," he told reporters.

"It was a mistake, it is a mistake that we have worked to rectify. As we said before, the call has been rescheduled and will take place in relatively short order.

"It was a logistical issue that was compounded by the fact that our embassy in Moscow is under significant restrictions in terms of its staffing, and so when we have issues with the telephone system there, for example, the technicians are not located on site. In fact, they're not even located in Russia."

Griner, the two-time Olympic gold medallist who plays for Phoenix Mercury and UMMC Ekaterinburg, was detained at a Russian airport in February after authorities there said a search of her bag revealed vape cartridges containing cannabis oil.

The US State Department designated her as wrongfully detained in May, while last week, Russian state news agency TASS reported a pre-trial detention had been extended until July.

For Cherelle Griner, the unanswered calls have had a demoralising effect.

"I find it unacceptable, and I have zero trust in our government right now," she told the Associated Press. "If I can't trust you to catch a Saturday call outside of business hours, how can I trust you to actually be negotiating on my wife's behalf to come home? Because that's a much bigger ask than to catch a Saturday call.

"This was such a big moment because this would have been the first time where I truly could tell if she's OK. This would have been the first time for me to actually just hear her in real time and to truly know if she's OK or to know if she's seconds away from not being in existence anymore."