Celtics Wear 'WE ARE BG' Shirts to Show Support for Brittney Griner During Detainment

The Boston Celtics are playing in the NBA Finals for the first time since 2010, and they're using the opportunity to show their support for WNBA veteran Brittney Griner, who has been wrongfully detained by the Russian government for 107 days.

Ahead of Game 2 against the Golden State Warriors, the Celtics wore T-shirts that read, "WE ARE BG," during Saturday's practice and media availability. National Basketball Players Association Vice President Grant Williams told reporters the shirts were a collaboration between the NBPA and WNBPA:

"The shirts were super important not only showing our support for our sister that is detained over in Russia, Brittney Griner, we just wanted to show that togetherness and love that we have throughout not only the NBA but the WNBA. She's been a vital part of the WNBA over years past, college, and in the amount of impact she's had on young female athletes, USA and overseas."

"We hope to have her back in the U.S. and reunited with her family and do what she loves and bring that love and tenacity she always plays with on the court."

Williams added that the WNBPA sent the T-shirts overnight and that every Celtics player put one on without hesitation as soon as they received them.

"As a collective, we wanted to come out and show our support for Brittney Griner," Jaylen Brown added. "She's been over there for an extended amount of time, and we feel like enough is enough."

Jayson Tatum also spoke about his relationship with Griner. He said the two got to know each other while playing for Team USA at the Summer Olympics in Tokyo and they became good friends.

"So it's extremely tough seeing what she's going through," Tatum said. "I know everybody sees and feels that, and obviously we're all together in support trying to bring her back to her family and things like that. Yeah, wearing those shirts today in support of her."

Griner has been detained since February after Russian officials said they found vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage at a Moscow airport.

State Department representative Ned Price said in a briefing last month that Griner is "continuing to do as well as could be expected under these exceedingly challenging circumstances":

"But again, our message is a clear and simple one—we continue to insist that Russia allow consistent and timely consular access to all U.S. citizen detainees. One-off visits are not sufficient, and we will continue to call on Moscow to uphold its commitments under the Vienna Convention for consistent and timely access as well."

According to ESPN, Griner's lawyers have visited her at least once a week while she has been detained. She is also receiving letters from friends and family in the United States, her agent, Lindsay Kagawa Colas, told CNN.

"While sporadic, written communication from her wife, family, friends and global sport community has been a source of comfort for BG during her wrongful detainment, going without real-time, regular contact with loved ones is inhumane," Colas said.

The Phoenix Mercury selected Griner with the No. 1 pick in the 2013 WNBA draft. She has gone on to have a successful career with the franchise, averaging 17.7 points, 7.6 rebounds and 1.8 assists in 254 games across nine seasons.

The 31-year-old is one of a number of players who compete overseas during the WNBA offseason, and she last took the court for Russia's UMMC Ekaterinburg in January.