LeBron James went on the defensive Wednesday after a snippet promoting his talk show “The Shop” left viewers with the impression that in his opinion WNBA star Brittney Griner might be rethinking her country’s commitment to her while she sits in a Russian prison.
“My comments on ‘The Shop’ regarding Brittney Griner wasn’t knocking our beautiful country,” the NBA star tweeted Tuesday night. “I was simply saying how she’s probably feeling emotionally along with so many other emotions, thoughts, etc. inside that cage she’s been in for over 100+ days!”
The show clip that generated the controversy ran Tuesday. Offering little context, it showed James asking “How can she feel like America has her back?”
Griner was arrested in an airport near Moscow in February, where she was allegedly in possession of cannabis oil. U.S. diplomats have been pressured by friends, family members and teammates of Griner’s, but have so far been unsuccessful in securing her return. Relations between the U.S. and Russia have been especially poor since Russian troops invaded Ukraine, a U.S. ally, in late February.
“I would be feeling like, ‘Do I even want to go back to America?’ ” James said in his TV show promo.
Griner’s Phoenix Mercury coach Vanessa Nygaard has said that if her team’s star were a heterosexual male like James, she suspects a deal may have been worked out by now to bring him home. James made sure his comments on Twitter were not misunderstood.
“Long story short #BringHerHome,” he tweeted.
James has nearly 52 million followers on Twitter. Like Griner, he has won Olympic gold twice for Team USA.
