It isn't one or the other.

BG has a great positive impact on recruiting. She was part of what influenced Kalani to come here. Bigs know they can come here and get to be more than a rebounding bot. They also know they can come and get to the next level.

Messer and Wilson are also big parts of our recruiting improvement.

It's all if these things.

We should honor these players, hopefully she'll finish her degree so we can retire her jersey.

Was Toyelle Wilson at the tourney games. I do not remember seeing her on the sidelines.

She's been on maternity leave for a while.

Chibears2 said:

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A 20 something year old would NOT have been in control of the narrative in a for profit book, in my estimation.

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There's no way Griner doesn't have final say on what's written in a book that she puts her name to. If you want to excuse her because she was young and naive and let others with an agenda to push or an angle to sell books influence her, I'll accept that. But, I don't accept that she was powerless.

Thanks for the note about Toyelle and maternity leave. I forgot - wondered where she was but glad to know she is still around.

did you notice that ***an has sort of fallen off the radar... never see anything from her at spn

rileyroo said:

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Britney Griner used to come to our football tailgate. She loved Baylor and knows that BU was good to her. She was swarmed every time she came by and loved every minute of it. I, for one, appreciated that she called out BU for their policies. I just wish she had not included Kim in the dialogue. Kim was a mother hen to the players. She protected Britney over and over and had her back after BG slugged the Tech girl. Kim loved Britney and only wanted the best for her. The story that was created about Kim being anti-gay couldn't be further from the truth. I know otherwise.

BU should welcome Britney back to campus and have a celebration with Kim at mid court. Many of the players you see today came to BU because of the Britney Griner influence.



UNTIL she apologises for the negative things she told the press after receiving a free scholarship from Baylor.......I don't care how many tailgates or positive comments she might make in the here and now, she is still one ungrateful spoiled brat who used her new platform to ridicule Mulkey and her school. Then and only then will I welcome her back and forgive her!
!

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longtimebear said:

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rileyroo said:

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Britney Griner used to come to our football tailgate. She loved Baylor and knows that BU was good to her. She was swarmed every time she came by and loved every minute of it. I, for one, appreciated that she called out BU for their policies. I just wish she had not included Kim in the dialogue. Kim was a mother hen to the players. She protected Britney over and over and had her back after BG slugged the Tech girl. Kim loved Britney and only wanted the best for her. The story that was created about Kim being anti-gay couldn't be further from the truth. I know otherwise.

BU should welcome Britney back to campus and have a celebration with Kim at mid court. Many of the players you see today came to BU because of the Britney Griner influence.



UNTIL she apologises for the negative things she told the press after receiving a free scholarship from Baylor.......I don't care how many tailgates or positive comments she might make in the here and now, she is still one ungrateful spoiled brat who used her new platform to ridicule Mulkey and her school. Then and only then will I welcome her back and forgive her!
!

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Last paragraph! I don't think your forgiveness is important. That is between Kim, Brittney and God. And I pray you have been perfect so you don't ever need forgiveness. Brittney was extremely naive and wanted to please...easy to manipulate. I watch her play in the summers and root like crazy for her.

zebra90 said:

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Thanks for the note about Toyelle and maternity leave. I forgot - wondered where she was but glad to know she is still around.

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She was a part of the parade. (But didn't have her baby with her. Lol)

Griner was young and being pulled in many different directions by many different people. I forgiver her for not conducting herself differently. I'm sure that the BG of today would conduct herself much differently.

This issue was partly cyclical. I know someone on the team who told me that Kim would give Britney privileges that no one else got. I specifically remember her telling me that after Britney punched the girl and got suspended that Kim wanted some players on the team to take her out for ice cream and she didn't get punished by Kim for the incident. She told me no one else would've gotten this privilege. That was maybe part of the entitlement that Britney felt she was bigger then the team. She was treated like that since high school.

Britney was also immature at the time. She was still a kid getting all the accolades of being the best women's basketball player in the country.

UBBY said:

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This issue was partly cyclical. I know someone on the team who told me that Kim would give Britney privileges that no one else got. I specifically remember her telling me that after Britney punched the girl and got suspended that Kim wanted some players on the team to take her out for ice cream and she didn't get punished by Kim for the incident. She told me no one else would've gotten this privilege. That was maybe part of the entitlement that Britney felt she was bigger then the team. She was treated like that since high school.

Britney was also immature at the time. She was still a kid getting all the accolades of being the best women's basketball player in the country.

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What some might call special treatment, others might call helping someone with specific needs and challenges through a specific situation. Britney was already being suspended, and the incident got national attention which made her a target.

It's important to note the context for what she did. Apparently, Tech fans were calling her the N-word, and they were making catcalls about her deep voice, her size and sexuality. The Tech player she hit had been given a mission to provoke her with words and actions, and it worked.

It was a learning experience for her. Obviously, her response to the provocations was both inappropriate and self-defeating, since it brought consequences down on her and not the player and fans who had started it. But I can imagine a lot of kids in Britney's situation as a college freshman who needed to develop tools to deal with nasty behavior that was intended to provoke, and who also needed someone who could mentor them instead of delivering only punishment.

Not everybody has the patience and self-control of a Jackie Robinson to bear that kind of burden. Robinson was hand-picked not because he was the best pure player but because he was the best player who could endure the abuse without retaliating. And it's worth remembering also that Robinson was a college graduate with some experience and added maturity, not an 18-year-old freshman.

bubbadog said:

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UBBY said:

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This issue was partly cyclical. I know someone on the team who told me that Kim would give Britney privileges that no one else got. I specifically remember her telling me that after Britney punched the girl and got suspended that Kim wanted some players on the team to take her out for ice cream and she didn't get punished by Kim for the incident. She told me no one else would've gotten this privilege. That was maybe part of the entitlement that Britney felt she was bigger then the team. She was treated like that since high school.

Britney was also immature at the time. She was still a kid getting all the accolades of being the best women's basketball player in the country.

---

What some might call special treatment, others might call helping someone with specific needs and challenges through a specific situation. Britney was already being suspended, and the incident got national attention which made her a target.

It's important to note the context for what she did. Apparently, Tech fans were calling her the N-word, and they were making catcalls about her deep voice, her size and sexuality. The Tech player she hit had been given a mission to provoke her with words and actions, and it worked.

It was a learning experience for her. Obviously, her response to the provocations was both inappropriate and self-defeating, since it brought consequences down on her and not the player and fans who had started it. But I can imagine a lot of kids in Britney's situation as a college freshman who needed to develop tools to deal with nasty behavior that was intended to provoke, and who also needed someone who could mentor them instead of delivering only punishment.

Not everybody has the patience and self-control of a Jackie Robinson to bear that kind of burden. Robinson was hand-picked not because he was the best pure player but because he was the best player who could endure the abuse without retaliating. And it's worth remembering also that Robinson was a college graduate with some experience and added maturity, not an 18-year-old freshman.

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Bill Russell had some comments about her situation, based on his experiences in the NBA...

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/20/sports/ncaabasketball/20griner.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

mlb60 said:

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bubbadog said:

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UBBY said:

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This issue was partly cyclical. I know someone on the team who told me that Kim would give Britney privileges that no one else got. I specifically remember her telling me that after Britney punched the girl and got suspended that Kim wanted some players on the team to take her out for ice cream and she didn't get punished by Kim for the incident. She told me no one else would've gotten this privilege. That was maybe part of the entitlement that Britney felt she was bigger then the team. She was treated like that since high school.

Britney was also immature at the time. She was still a kid getting all the accolades of being the best women's basketball player in the country.

---

What some might call special treatment, others might call helping someone with specific needs and challenges through a specific situation. Britney was already being suspended, and the incident got national attention which made her a target.

It's important to note the context for what she did. Apparently, Tech fans were calling her the N-word, and they were making catcalls about her deep voice, her size and sexuality. The Tech player she hit had been given a mission to provoke her with words and actions, and it worked.

It was a learning experience for her. Obviously, her response to the provocations was both inappropriate and self-defeating, since it brought consequences down on her and not the player and fans who had started it. But I can imagine a lot of kids in Britney's situation as a college freshman who needed to develop tools to deal with nasty behavior that was intended to provoke, and who also needed someone who could mentor them instead of delivering only punishment.

Not everybody has the patience and self-control of a Jackie Robinson to bear that kind of burden. Robinson was hand-picked not because he was the best pure player but because he was the best player who could endure the abuse without retaliating. And it's worth remembering also that Robinson was a college graduate with some experience and added maturity, not an 18-year-old freshman.

---

Bill Russell had some comments about her situation, based on his experiences in the NBA...

https://www.nytimes.com/2010/03/20/sports/ncaabasketball/20griner.html?smid=nytcore-ios-share

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Interesting read. Thanks for posting.

bubbadog said:

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fredbear said:

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I just wish we could let basketball be about basketball. Identity politics belong in another realm. All I cared about was BG being a great post player. I am not in favor of same gender sexuality for many reasons, but again, still a BG fan. I cheered her on then and now, even if our opinions might differ. Every thing is not about one's sexual identity. Just play basketball.

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I'm sure Britney Griner wished that she had been able to just play basketball without fans from other schools hounding her about her masculine-sounding voice and making claims about her sexual identity even while she remained in the closet. Britney wasn't the one who started playing identity politics. She wasn't out there advertising her opinions about same sex relationships. Others started making attacks about her identity.

It's just difficult to imagine everything she went through, and it's easy for people to criticize when they haven't walked in her shoes.

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Amen!! It is terribly difficult to understand another's pain.

tommie said:

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fujobear said:

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why a stature for Griner? She won ONE NC? Maybe if she'd done all four... but i'm not sure she's the best player we've ever had...

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If she's getting one, please get a different Sculpture(r) than the guy who did the RG3 statue.

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I know right? It's pretty bad.

I'm not a basketball player, so nobody at Baylor told me I couldn't talk about x part of my life... But if they had, I'd probably have been somewhat hurt and frustrated by it, as a 20 year old. I would be now, that's for sure.

Griner has every right to say what she wants, especially after being a student. If alums cannot speak about the school, who can?

She was great for us, and I will only ever wish her the best.

Brian Ethridge said:

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I wish she'd finish her degree.

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Yup. WNBA doesn't pay much.

Brian Ethridge said:

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UBBY said:

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Brian Ethridge said:

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I wish she'd finish her degree.

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Yup. WNBA doesn't pay much.

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Russia does

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Japan pays pretty well too don't they?

UBBY said:

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Brian Ethridge said:

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UBBY said:

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Brian Ethridge said:

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I wish she'd finish her degree.

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Yup. WNBA doesn't pay much.

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Russia does

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Japan pays pretty well too don't they?

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Think that's China and pretty sure BG makes $1MM a year over there too.

May 11, 2019
WNBA Preseason