Brittney Griner DROPS BOMBSHELL on Mercury Exit—Calls Jump to Dream a ‘No-Brainer’! Are the Rumors True – Is She Being Bullied For Being Trans?
WNBA superstar Brittney Griner discussed why she chose the Atlanta Dream in free agency after leaving the Phoenix Mercury.
One of the most unexpected moves of the WNBA offseason was legendary post player Brittney Griner leaving the Phoenix Mercury (where she has spent all 11 seasons of her WNBA career to this point) to join the Atlanta Dream in free agency.
While there had been speculation that Griner, who was an unrestricted free agent this offseason, could be seeking a new team — especially given the uncertainty surrounding longtime Phoenix teammate Diana Taurasi’s career — the sentiment seemed to be that she’d likely choose a team like the Las Vegas Aces, who are bona fide WNBA championship contenders.
But Griner chose the Dream instead; who, despite having several elite players on their roster, finished the 2024 regular season with a 15-25 record.
Griner explained why she chose the Dream in WNBA free agency during a February 15 interview with Tribune-Herald sports editor Brice Cherry before her induction into the Texas Sports Hall of Fame Class of 2025.
“It was tough. I definitely wanted to stay in Phoenix. I had no plans on leaving actually, but the business, sometimes it’s not always your decision,” Griner said. “You’ve got to call an audible and figure out some things. And that’s basically what happened this year. Just had to figure out, ‘All right, well what’s my next step now?’
“Shoutout to Atlanta, because I’d been friends with some of their players prior to this… so when I thought about another locker room, I was like ‘Well, I think the Atlanta team would be amazing if they would want me.’ And luckily, they wanted me too,” Griner continued.
“It became a no-brainer really quickly. Because I knew I didn’t want to draw this out, make this some long drawn-out decision. I wanted to make a decision and stick with it.”
While it will be weird to see Griner in a Dream uniform, that franchise has received a major boost in terms of its chances for success in 2025.
