Brittney Griner's initials, jersey number to be featured on all WNBA courts

The 31-year-old plays for a Russian team during the WNBA offseason. Griner was arrested in February at a Moscow-area airport while entering the country after Russian prosecutors said she illegally brought vape cartridges containing hashish oil.

The former No. 1 overall draft pick has not been formally charged, but she is scheduled to have a hearing May 19.

In other Griner news on Tuesday morning, according to a report from ESPN staff writer T.J. Quinn, the U.S. government now considers the Phoenix Mercury center to be wrongfully detained by the Russian government, "signaling a significant shift in how officials will try to get her home".

"The officials and other sources close to Griner's case declined to say what led to the shift or whether there have been any discussions about what it would take to secure her release," Quinn wrote. "But the change in official designation means that the U.S. government will no longer wait for Griner's case to play out through the Russian legal system and will seek to negotiate her return. It also means that Griner's fellow WNBA players and supporters in Congress will be told they have the family's blessing to bring as much attention to her case as they wish."