Chicago Sky stars Allie Quigley and Kahleah Copper continue WNBA-wide push to advocate for the return of Brittney Griner.
On Aug. 4, Chicago Sky shooters Allie Quigley and Kahleah Copper spent the day with Chicago Bulls legend Scottie Pippen as the trio gave back to Chicago youth through Sports Matter Day.
Although the day was an uplifting one for the Chicago sports community, it was a somber one in the basketball world. That was the day that the verdict for Phoenix Mercury center Brittney Griner was announced as she was sentenced to nine years in Russian prison.
Griner’s team is currently appealing that decision, but as Americans wait to see when Griner will be able to return home, the WNBA has come together and commemorated her all season. She was named an honorary All-Star and starter in this year’s All-Star Game, an honor that she enjoyed seven times previously in her career.
Upon hearing Griner’s sentence, Chicago Sky stars Allie Quigley and Kahleah Copper reiterated their desire to see Brittney return home to her family, friends and teammates.
“We just want her to get home. I don’t think there’s much to say,” Copper told FanSided. “It’s a very sad, heavy day, but I think that all in all, we just really want her to get home to her family. I think that’s the most important thing.”
Allie Quigley, Kahleah Copper maintain WNBA push to see Brittney Griner come home
Quigley, who has been teammates with Griner on UMMC Ekaterinburg since 2019, maintained that she and Copper and other WNBA players are focused on doing what they can to get Griner home as soon as possible.
“Yeah, I mean, like Kahleah said, we’re just focused on trying to get her home today,” Quigley said. “Whatever that takes. We’re just thinking about her right now and her family and just praying for her. Just doing all that we can from over here.”
In 2021, Quigley and Griner won the EuroLeague Championship with Ekaterinburg. Quigley and Courtney Vandersloot, Quigley’s wife and Chicago Sky teammate, were in Russia alongside Sky forward Emma Meesseman when Russia invaded Ukraine this February. All three players left the team as Griner also sought to leave the country before she was detained on drug possession charges.
While WNBA players are consistently pushing to bring Griner home, discussing the emotional impact of her detainment has been traumatizing, as Phoenix Mercury point guard Skylar Diggins-Smith recently described it.
Diggins-Smith announced that she would not be playing the final two games of the WNBA regular season, and while her exact reasoning is unknown, she has made it clear that Griner’s detention has weighed heavily on the Mercury locker room throughout their season.
Quigley, who wore a shirt bearing Griner’s image during Sports Matter Day, and Copper continue to think of Griner as the WNBA does what it can to bring her home.