‘Don’t Lose Hope’: Brittney Griner Sends a Message of Support For Imprisoned WSJ Reporter Evan Gershkovich

AP Photo; AP Photo/LM Otero

WNBA player Brittney Griner had a message for Wall Street Journal reporter Evan Gershkovich following his conviction by a Russian court on espionage charges: “Don’t lose hope.”

In an interview with NBC News’ Liz Kreutz, set to air on Friday, the Phoenix Mercury center and Olympian offered some supportive comments about Gershkovich’s imprisonment, about a year and a half after she was released from a Russian prison in December 2022.

During her conversation with Holt, she urged Gershkovich to “stay strong”:

Griner, who was released in December after serving about 10 months in a Russian penal colony, said on Friday her heart goes out to Gershkovich and his loved ones.

“I went through that, and I understand what that means,” Griner said.

“We have to get him back, we have to,” she said, with a message to the journalist: “Don’t lose hope.”

Griner was arrested at a Moscow airport in February 2022 after less than a gram of cannabis oil was found in her luggage. She pleaded guilty that July, but maintained her innocence. Her release occurred in a prisoner exchange with Russian arms dealer Viktor Bout .

Gershkovich was found guilty following a sham trial in a Russian court and sentenced to 16 years in prison. He was first arrested in March 2023. His defense team has vowed to appeal the conviction.