Nine-Time All-Star, Two-Time Defensive Player of the Year to Stay in the Valley
PHOENIX – The Phoenix Mercury announced today the team has re-signed WNBA Champion and nine-time WNBA All-Star Brittney Griner.
“BG has been a stalwart of the Phoenix Mercury and Phoenix community for the past decade, and we are excited that she will be with us as we build a team that can compete every night on both ends of the floor,” said Mercury General Manager Nick U’Ren. “We know winning is what’s most important to her and that she can help lead us this year.”
Entering her 11th season, all with Phoenix, Griner stands as the Mercury’s all-time leading rebounder (2,125) and is second in points (5,038), behind only Diana Taurasi, the league’s all-time leading scorer. She has been named to the WNBA’s Top 25 Players of All Time list, owns nine career All-Star selections, six All-WNBA Team selections, two scoring titles, two Defensive Player of the Year awards and seven All-Defensive Team nods. Griner is the Mercury’s all-time leader in blocks (766), double-doubles (64) and field goal percentage (56.0%), ranks third in games (285) and minutes played (8,700) and is fifth in assists (531).
Griner, the No. 1 pick in the 2013 WNBA Draft, helped lead the Mercury to a 2014 WNBA Championship and has played in the postseason in nine of her 10 seasons, including six WNBA Semifinals and two Finals appearances.
“Phoenix is home,” said Griner. “The love and support my wife and I have received from the organization, community and X-Factor over the last 11 years has meant everything to us. I’m excited to continue my career in a Mercury jersey and work towards bringing another championship back to the Valley.”
Last season, Griner averaged 17.6 points, 6.3 rebounds and 2.2 assists, while ranking second in the league in field goal percentage (56.0%) and third in blocks (1.6). She was named a WNBA All-Star starter for the sixth time in her career, becoming just the eighth player in league history to earn six or more All-Star starter designations.
Griner ranks third on the WNBA’s all-time blocks list, owns the WNBA records for blocks in a game (11), blocks in a season (129), single-season block average (4.0) and has led the league in blocks per game in a WNBA-best eight of her 10 seasons. The 6’9 center has recorded 18 career regular season dunks, two playoff dunks and five All-Star Game dunks, while the rest of the WNBA has combined for four regular season dunks in the league’s 27-year history.
A two-time Olympic gold medalist (2016, 2020) with Team USA, Griner has also won two gold medals at the FIBA Women’s Basketball World Championship (2014, 2018) and an NCAA Championship at Baylor University (2012), placing her in the exclusive club of 12 women who have won an Olympic, World Cup, WNBA and NCAA title.
The Phoenix Mercury will open the 2024 WNBA season on the road against the Las Vegas Aces on May 14, followed by the Fry’s Food Stores Home Opener vs. the Atlanta Dream on May 18. Tickets for the home opener are available at phoenixmercury.com/single-game-tickets.