Watch: Brittney Griner hits first bucket in WNBA return

Griner hadn't played a WNBA game since the 2021 season. In February of 2022, she was arrested and detained at Moscow airport for drug possession. That was only the beginning of Griner's harrowing ordeal. The 32-year-old remained detained in Russia for nearly 10 months, leaving much of the basketball world in disbelief. 

Griner was later sentenced to nine years in prison, prompting President Joe Biden and the U.S. government to complete a one-for-one prisoner swap of Griner for arms dealer Viktor Bout  in December.

Last week, Griner made her official WNBA return in the preseason, telling David Brandt of the Associate Press that she wasn't "going to take a day for granted." 

"Hearing the national anthem, it definitely hit different," Griner said. "It's like when you go for the Olympics, you're sitting there, about to get gold put on your neck, the flags are going up and the anthem is playing, it just hits different." 

Now, with the nearly year-long ordeal behind her, the hope is Griner can return to focusing on her on-court career. Friday night represented a great first step.