WNBPA ຮຽກ​ຮ້ອງ​ໃຫ້​ມີ​ການ​ບິນ Charter ຫຼັງ​ຈາກ​ຜູ້ນ​ໄດ້​ຮັບ​ຮອງ​ໃນ​ສະ​ຫນາມ​ບິນ​

Just before 10:00 am central time on Saturday morning, Phoenix Mercury forward Brianna Turner tweeted about an encounter she and her teammates had while traveling.

“Player safety while traveling should be at the forefront. People following with cameras saying wild remarks is never acceptable. Excessive harassment. Our team nervously huddled in a corner unsure how to move about. We demand better,” Turner posted on her Twitter account.

Another account replied to Turner’s tweet, seemingly providing additional context. An account under the name Alex Stein posted what appears to be a video thumbnail that reads “Calling our Brittney Griner.” The graphic includes what appears to be a video screenshot of a man standing next to Mercury center Brittney Griner, Turner can also be seen in the screenshot.

I reached out to the Phoenix Mercury, the WNBA, and the WNBPA to gain more clarity on the situation. Although the WNBA did not directly respond back to my inquiry, they did release a statement.

“As we gather additional information about today’s incident at the Dallas Airport, it has come to our attention that this was orchestrated by a social media figure and provocateur. His actions were inappropriate and unfortunate,” the league said.

“The safety of Brittney Griner and all WNBA players is our top priority. Prior to the season, the WNBA worked together with the Phoenix Mercury and BG’s team to ensure her safety during her travel, which included charter flights for WNBA games and assigned security personnel with her at all times. We remain steadfastly committed to the highest standards of security for players.”

ເພີ່ມເຕີມຈາກ FORBESBrittney Griner Returns To The WNBA After Detention In Russia-Here’s What To KnowBy Brian Bushard

Prior to the 2023 season, I asked Engelbert about safety concerns regarding Griner and the Phoenix Mercury. She told me there were plans in place, and they were meant to keep all WNBA players safe, especially Griner.

“We’ve been working substantially with our security experts, with the Phoenix Mercury, with Brittney’s team about giving her unique conditions about some things that we’ll do this year,” Engelbert told me in April.

Commissioner Engelbert did not offer any particular, for confidentiality reasons. She did say a plan was in the works and that the safety of Griner and all WNBA players was in the works.

“We all want to protect all of our players, so we’re looking at additional security for all of our players, not just Brittney, but Brittney definitely – being a unique case this year. So, yes, we’ve worked on that plan, and we’re putting some finishing touches as we get into training camp,” Engelbert said.

Griner missed the entire 2022 WNBA season after being detained by Russian authorities. She spent 10 months in a Russian prison before the United States arranged a prisoner swap in December.

An Ongoing Fight For Charter Flights

The WNBPA responded to my email with a statement they also made public. In their remarks, the WNBPA once again called for charter flights, something Engelbert and the WNBPA have been discussing for some time and was mentioned in the Commissioner’s full remarks at the 2023 WNBA Draft.

“As we continue to hear from our members throughout the start of the season and particularly today with the situation involving the Phoenix Mercury at the Dallas airport, we are quite clear that the matter of charter travel is NOT a ‘competitive advantage’ issue. We cannot help but wonder if the league and teams preclude more reasonable and flexible rules regarding charter travel in 2023 in order to seek leverage on this issue at the bargaining table,” the statement read.

“What BG and all of her PHX teammates experienced today was a calculated confrontation that left them feeling very unsafe. Everyone who was paying attention knew this would happen. We could have and should have been more proactive. Allowing teams to fly charter is ONLY about player health and safety, and until the league and teams take this issue seriously, situations like this will continue to occur.”

ເພີ່ມເຕີມຈາກ FORBESຜູ້ນ WNBA, ກໍາມະການຮຽກຮ້ອງໃຫ້ Brittney Griner ກັບຄືນຈາກລັດເຊຍ

The Atlanta Dream is the first team to make such adjustments. Former WNBA player and current Atlanta Dream owner and executive Renee Montgomery says her team will travel with security moving forward.

I reached out to Dream owner Larry Gottesdiener who told me the team expressed concerns to the league. “Once it became clear that that wasn’t going to happen, except for the playoffs, we acted expeditiously,” he told me in a direct message.

Gottesdiener has long advocated for charter flights and has continued to express his thoughts on the necessity to arrange it for the WNBA again today. I have asked the league and the WNBPA about Gottesdiener’s request for security and will update this story with their responses.