Free agent Brittney Griner re-signs with WNBA s Mercury

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PHOENIX -- Brittney Griner will be back with the Phoenix Mercury for another season.

The star center re-signed with the only WNBA team she's played with, the team announced Tuesday.

"Phoenix is home," Griner said in a statement. "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."

The 33-year-old Griner returned last season after missing 2022 while she was detained in a Russian jail. She played in the second-most games of her career, averaging 17.5 points, 6.3 rebounds, 2.2 assists and 1.6 blocks for a Mercury team that went 9-31.

"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," Mercury general manager Nick U'Ren said in a statement. "We know winning is what's most important to her and that she can help lead us this year."

Griner, the first overall pick in 2013, was released from the Russian jail on Dec. 8, 2022, after spending 294 days there following her arrest on Feb. 17, 2022. When she made her 2023 debut on May 19, she had not played in a game in 474 days.

Griner, who has twice been the runner-up for WNBA MVP, ranks third all time in blocks. She signed a one-year deal last offseason worth $165,100.