WNBA superstar Brittney Griner and her wife are expecting a child: Here's what we know
Brittney Griner, a WNBA superstar and Phoenix Mercury center since 2013, announced she is expecting a child with her wife, Cherelle Griner.
The baby is due in July, according to a post the couple shared on Instagram on Saturday. The couple shared a photo of them holding hands next to ultrasound images of the baby.
"Can’t believe we’re less than three months away from meeting our favorite human being," Cherelle wrote in the post.
The post received a wave of reactions in the comments, with multiple celebrities congratulating the couple. The Phoenix Mercury and the WNBA also used their official Instagram accounts to share their support and excitement for the coming child.
Brittney Griner is a two-time Olympic gold medalist and a two-time WNBA scoring leader who has played 11 WNBA seasons with the Mercury, out of which she has been named All-Star seven times. The 6-foot-9 leads the league in career blocks average and has records for single-game and single-season blocks.
According to People Magazine, Brittney and Cherelle first met while attending Baylor University from 2009 to 2013. They did not start dating until years later, after the basketball star split from her first wife, Glory Johnson, in 2016.
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In 2019, Brittney and Chelle Griner got married about one year after the athlete proposed, according to People.
The expected baby is not Brittney's first child, as she shares twin girls with Johnson, who is also a famed WNBA player. Johnson became pregnant with the girls via in-vitro fertilization during her brief marriage with Griner.
The estranged couple had an ongoing legal battle over child support in 2016 to determine how much care the twin girls, Ava Simone and Solei Diem, would need. The twins currently live in Tennessee.
Griner and Johnson continued to be friends years after their divorce. In 2022, when Griner was detained in Russia on drug charges, Johnson shared a post in support of her former wife.
"Our Divorce ACTUALLY brought Us closer than I could have EVER imagined! Over the past several years, we still call each other to share our feelings, secrets, & even Life goals," Johson shared on Instagram soon after her arrest. "B is My Best Friend!!!!"
Brittney Griner was released in December 2022. Cherelle Griner thanked fans for their support of her wife while was in the custody of Russian authorities after being found with vape cartridges in her carry-on luggage at a Moscow airport.
“Thank you to everyone who has reached out to me regarding my wife’s safe return from Russia. Your prayers and support are greatly appreciated,” Cherelle Griner wrote in an Instagram post. “I love my wife wholeheartedly, so this message comes during one of the weakest moments of my life."
This article originally appeared on Arizona Republic: Phoenix Mercury star Britney Griner and wife expecting child
