Celtics players wear ‘We Are BG’ shirts in protest of Brittney Griner’s detainment
Griner's been held by Russia for over 100 days, with the U.S. State Department calling it a "wrongful detainment."
The Celtics took time to acknowledge an issue off the court during Saturday’s practice ahead of Game 2 of the NBA Finals.
Several players wore shirts that said “We Are BG,” protesting WNBA star Brittney Griner’s detention in Russia. The U.S. State Department marked Griner as “wrongfully detained” earlier in May and May 27 marked the 100-day mark since Russia held her captive. Griner was arrested and accused of smuggling cannabis oil in her luggage at a Russian airport in February when she traveled to play for UMMC Ekaterinburg during the WNBA offseason.
Celtics forward Grant Williams spearheaded the idea to wear the shirts to practice on Saturday with help from the Players Association and the WNBA.
“We just wanted to show that togetherness and love that we have,” Williams told reporters of the team coming together to wear the shirts.
“We just hope to not only have her brought back to the U.S., where she can be reunited with her family, but also have her do what she loves and that’s playing the sport of basketball,” Williams added.
Celtics star Jaylen Brown gave Williams kudos for leading the way in Saturday’s support of Griner. Brown, who’s often spoken about social issues during his six-year NBA career, isn’t sure if the Celtics will wear them throughout the series or not. He does support his teammates though who want to shine a light on certain issues.
“We felt like it was a good idea to use our availability and our platforms to bring attention to certain matters,” Brown said. “I always stand for that. Being an athlete, we’re not just up here just to entertain you guys. We also have a voice. I always appreciate and applaud athletes, entertainers, my teammates who plan to do something with that.
“I’m not sure if we’ll wear it for the rest of the time, but today was a good day to bring attention to a topic that was necessary. Tomorrow might be something else.”
Celtics star Jayson Tatum got to know Griner a bit during the 2020 Summer Olympics in Japan. Tatum played for the American men’s basketball team and Griner played for the American women’s basketball team.
“You know, being over there with the Olympics, obviously it was during COVID and so we couldn’t really go out and see other events and things like that,” Tatum said. “So after the games, after practice, we would be in the hospitality room, men and women. We would be in there, playing cards, karaoke, things like that, video games. Great person to be around. She just enlightens the entire room with her personality.
“So it’s extremely tough seeing what she’s going through. I know everybody sees and feels that, and obviously we’re all together in support (of) trying to bring her back to her family and things like that. Yeah, wearing those shirts today in support of her.”
Celtics point guard Marcus Smart was among the multiple players to wear the shirt at Saturday’s practice. After he wasn’t asked about it during his press conference, Smart had a message to share.
“Don’t forget, y’all, see this shirt. We are with BG, man,” Smart said.
The Celtics have been outspoken on social issues in recent days. Unprompted, Celtics coach Ime Udoka mentioned the recent school shooting in Uvalde, Texas, which killed 19 kids and two adults, following their Game 7 win over the Heat, hoping that the country doesn’t lose focus on what’s important in life.
Williams also wore a shirt in support of Griner on Tuesday when the Celtics flew to San Franciso. On Friday, the Celtics changed their social media pages to orange in support of National Gun Violence Awareness Day.
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