that will do it for me. i will be back saturday and sunday at 6:00 p.m. eastern. follows on x, instagram, tik tok, and threats. you can catch the lips of the show on youtube. you can also listen to every episode on our show as a podcast for free. just scan the qr cord you see right there on your screen. don't go anywhere, a marathon of encores kicks off with the exclusive interview with brittney griner next here on msnbc. thanks for watching. >> tonight on the reidout. >> talk to me about that moment

when you realized those cartridges remained in your bag in the airport in russia. >> it was a freefall. i saw my life flash before my eyes. it's over, bg is no more and that moment and i was afraid. >> w nba star brittney griner in her first cable interview since her imprisonment in a russian pulock. we talked about the fear, the sham trial, the letter she wrote to putin, how trump turned on her and her joyful homecoming. >> welcome to a special edition of the reidout. interest in women's ask about is searching things to young pallets like kamilla cordoso, angel reese, and caitlin clark. all of them helped boost the wnba star power, as well as draw attention to pay disparities in the league. not too long ago, the world was

fixated on one basketball star for an incident that occurred far from any american port. back in february 2022, brittney griner, aw nba all-star and two- time olympic gold medalist was stopped at a security checkpoint at a moscow airport officials said they found vape canisters containing cannabis oil in her luggage. she played basketball in russia during her off-season, something many wnba players do to supplement the league salaries. after being found guilty of drug smuggling and possession charges, griner was sentenced to nine years in a russia penal colony. many feared how griner would be treated in russia as a black woman and high profiled american, especially during a time when russia was invading ukraine. in the u.s. griner's wife lived a different nightmare in

a perpetual state of waiting while becoming the public face to bring britney, no to her family and friends as bg, home. several months at a penal colony in russia, known for harsh conditions, griner said she contemplated suicide . she has recently shared more details on the harrowing days. being left outside in the fridge and russian winter for hours and having to get permission to cut her frozen locks in prison. she was finally released on the tarmac and the united arab emirates in exchange for a russian arms dealer. it has been 17 months since her detention in russia. in her first cable television interview, we get to hear about the story from brittney griner herself. >> thank you for being here. >> thank you. >> i appreciate you being here to talk to me. your book is so good. it is so poignant. it might have given me a nightmare or two, it is important that you told the story because it strikes me

that only you could have been in the situation that you were in, for a lot of reasons and we will get into those. i pulled some quotes from your book that i want to read to you. this is the first one that struck me, it struck all of us, it says fear takes many forms. is the kind you feel when life sneaks up from behind and frightens you half to death. some people freeze. others run. i'm usually the one who fights like . when i saw those cartridges, not one but two different types of fear shudder through me. there was the incident instinct to fight, flee, or freeze for it instead my body went into major freefall as i stumbled off a cliff and plunged into an ocean. talk to me about that moment when you realized those cartridges accidentally remained in your bag, in the airport, in russia. >> it was definitely a freefall. have you ever been so scared, something to the core, not a

little ghost scared, but really loved one in danger type fear. that feeling is what went through my body flash before my eyes, i was like, it is over, bg is no more in that moment and i was deathly afraid. >> part of this story is the fact that you were a star in russia. you are on the a cat team, you were the star, russian kids were running up to you and wanting your art a graph, did part of you think they will let me go? >> there was a little help, at the same time i also understand relations between our countries and i am like, that's not gonna slide. >> you talk about, not just that, but being forced to sign something. you don't speak russian. >> not at all.

>> no one spoke english. they finally get somebody from duty-free to try to translate. when you finally relented after being prodded and needled to sign this paper, what did you think you were signing? >> i had no idea but i knew i was signing something that probably needed to be read to me . i knew this was something that needed to be explained to me. by me signing this paper, what am i saying, what am i agreeing to what rights am i giving up? it was none of that, it was just a worker that came over and said you sign here and very broken english. you have to sign this paper because this is giving up your rights or you are meeting, none of that. >> you played for seven years and russia come in so you know a little something about the country and you thought you had an affinity for the country, in that moment, he wrote about your arrest, you told you were taken to the police station it

was a temporary detention center like a county jail. now you know, not only are they arresting me, but i am going to be taken to jail. >> yes. >> did you think of that moment, i am being taken to jail or did you think of that moment, i am a black, queer woman come in a country in which i am a super minority and not necessarily embraced minority. what will that jail be like for me? >> i was terrified when i was thinking about going to that jail and i thought what game with a plate? i soon found out one of the games trying to tell me to go into one of the men's cells but i said i'm not going into that cell. another guard said something in russian and shook his hand and took me to the women's side. i was like, it is a game. i knew it was all stacked against me. >> do you believe you were targeted? people knew who you

were a new your landing and deliberately targeted you? >> i believe so, yes. the whole going through during the transfer, how i was singled out to come over when there is a flood of people walking through not being scanned, things not getting searched and i saw people who were getting asked to come to the side, i was like, there was a tip, they knew i was coming through. >> when you got to the jail, we you wrote about the isolation of the cell, you are a tall person, 6'9", trying to fit in a car where you are they are not concerned about your physical health or safety. i wonder, do you think the people in the jail knew who you were and they decided to further target bullying you. it was striking to see you right on how you were made a spectacle , turned into a spectacle.

>> yes. >> in your mind, was it your identity or do you think they know who this is. >> i would hear things like the basketball american. i would see the little hole where they could see you, they would lift that up all the time, all hours of the night i would hear it go up and down and snickering and laughing. i was like, i am the zoo animal they get to come see. >> i think one of the most tragic things about the narrative that you wrote, you write about that not being the first time you felt that way. you write about always being the tallest, about always being different, even growing up. >> yep. >> it strikes me as doubly tragic to feel like a zoo animal, for you, other than playing basketball and sports getting out of that feeling,

just growing up, talk about that. >> i definitely felt like i was the outsider. i vividly remember six, seventh grade, another girl literally came up to me and touched my whole chest and set, see, she is not a girl. the voice was a little deeper, the height, i was always a spectacle. i was always, look how different you are and i have always felt that. i have different. when i walk in a room, people notice how different i am. it took me a little bit, but i embraced it. that moment, being in that prison and how they were treating me, it took me back to that spectacle of my childhood. >> even to the point that they were essentially threatening to put you into a madhouse tried to force you to admit that you were a drug addict, using the stereotypes of a black person saying you must be a drug addict and when did you decide that you are and trying to needle you in that way.

>> i did not decide that i was gay great i knew this and when i said it and it was translated to them you could see their faces, that's not right. when did you choose, when did you start having six socks that i said i never had sick thoughts been being told that they were going to throw me into the madhouse if i did not admit to my guilt. >> take me back before that. you i was to develop skills growing up in dealing with bullying. as someone who has dealt with bullying and understands that on some level, sports and athletics does help. >> it does. >> it gives you something for people to focus on. being a class clown has people left with you rather than at you. talk about the skills you have to develop in order to deal with that. >> it a thick skin. you definitely develop a thick skin going through that.

when i found sports it gave me a purpose. is that of acting out and trying to get people to like me, i was able to channel that to my performance and the court. i became popular when i started playing basketball. now i can be excepted because i'm doing this cool thing on the court. when i really felt acceptance is when they got to know me and they were like, you are really cool. i can relate to you more. that is when i really felt the genuine acceptance. i felt it a little bit, of course i'm young, i felt stardom and i thought finally. but it was not finally, until they got to know me. >> then you fell in love. >> i did. >> obviously the other thing that got you through you were tormented and you were by yourself but what got you through was cherelle and her

face and knowing that she was there that got you through it. initially, you are definitely trying to get in touch with her. you were desperately sending these text messages, pick up the phone, it is 2:00 in the morning. talk about being without her at that moment. >> it was so hard. i was sending message, calling, message, it was the wee hours. i did this flight so many times, she was still asleep waiting for me to be on my next flight. when i finally got to her, it was a little bit of a relief because i know someone that loves me no swear i am at a what's going on and she can start rallying the troops and figure out the next course of action. i was lost. i did not understand that i did not know what to do next. i knew just to be quiet and wait for legal representation, other than that, i really needed her. >> let me read a little more of your book you wrote this, it was strength that i borrowed

when mine ran out. i wanted to take my life more than once in this first few weeks but i felt like leaving her so badly. in that cell i did not care anymore if there was a afterlife. i just wanted that want to be over. suicide would have been easy but i couldn't put my family through that nightmare, and i specially could not do that to my mama. that and relle's faith is what kept me here. >> i note you wrote a lot about faith, not just relle's faith but the faith you developed over time. tell me more about that. i think for a lot of people, people might be surprised that you could develop a strong faith, not only because of the situation, because of this country people who claim to be christians, i will say claim to be christians, are not normally affirming of someone like you. how did you find faith in that moment? >> it was a journey and it was hard. my dad would always tell me and relle, her faith was so strong when we first met, to rely on

god and trust in god and turn it over to him. in that moment i had to do that. i had to rely on all of those things and turn it over to him. it was out of everyone's hands at that moment. that is what got me through, my faith and my family. if i -- i knew it was going to be bad. who knows if they were going to release my body, if they were going to hold onto it, i could not put my wife or my family through that. >> up next, how russia's war on ukraine changed everything about brittney griner's legal situation. the reidout continues after this . this . ke that. woo hoo! ensure max protein, 30 grams protein, 1 gram sugar, 25 vitamins and minerals. and a new fiber blend with a prebiotic. (♪♪) ♪ [suspenseful music] trains. [whoosh] ♪

trains that sense what isn't on the schedule. ♪ trains that use the power of dell ai and intel. ♪ to see hundreds of miles of tracks. ♪ [vroom] [train horn] [buzz] clearing the way, [whoosh] so you arrive exactly where you belong. i love your dress. oh thanks! i splurged a little because liberty mutual customized my car insurance and i saved hundreds. that's great. i know, right? i've been telling everyone. baby: liberty. did you hear that? ty just said her first word. can you say “mama”? baby: liberty. can you say “auntie”? baby: liberty. how many people did you tell? only pay for what you need. jingle: ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ baby: ♪ liberty. ♪ an alternative to pills, voltaren is a clinically proven arthritis pain relief gel, which penetrates deep to

target the source of pain with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicine directly at the source. voltaren, the joy of movement. annika. i found the bomb. ok johann. there should be a blue wire and a yellow wire. cut the blue one. they're both blue! visionworks. see the difference. summer's on its way... and wayfair's big memorial day clearance is here now! it's the talk of the town. right now through may 28th, get up to 70% off everything home. save on finds for indoors and out. plus, score surprise flash deals that'll make your day. and get it all with fast shipping straight to your door. save up to 70% off wayfair's memorial day clearance now through may 28th, and kickstart your summer with savings! ♪ wayfair every style, every home ♪ shingles. some describe it as an intense burning sensation. or an unbearable itch. this painful blistering rash

could also disrupt your work and time with family. shingles could also lead to long—term, debilitating nerve pain that can last for months or even years. if you're over 50, the virus that causes shingles is likely already inside of you. (♪♪) and as you age, your risk of developing shingles increases. (♪♪) don't wait. ask your doctor or pharmacist about shingles today. a slow network is no network for business. ask your doctor or pharmacist that's why more choose comcast business. and now, we're introducing ultimate speed for business —our fastest plans yet. we're up to 12 times faster than verizon, at&t, and t-mobile. and existing customers could even get up to triple the speeds... at no additional cost. it's ultimate speed for ultimate business. don't miss out on our fastest speed plans yet!

switch to comcast business and get started for $49.99 a month. plus, ask how to get up to an $800 prepaid card. call today!

back with more of my exclusive interview with brittney griner. >> you spend valentine's day with your wife, then you get on a plane with those cartridges that you did not realize were in there you are arrested and 10 days later russia invades ukraine. how did the invasion change what you understood to be your reality? in the hope that you were going to get out of this, the ukraine war changed it. >> that changed everything. any sliver of hope that i had we could come to some kind of agreement, or a trade or something quietly, that all went out the window. when they invaded that was another moment of that whoosh feeling. i was like this is it.

there is no way now and how long those wars take, they take forever and it is still going on. i was like i need to get prepared for the long haul because this is going to be a very long time. >> you wrote a chapter called putin's pond. did you get the sense that once you had russian lawyers, one whom you became very close to, did it become close to you that putin was going to use you? >> 100%. the few times i would get the guards to say something to me like, where my going? am i the only one in the cell? i knew the american basketball player had to be by themselves. this is weird. normally you go into the holding tank with everyone else , you are in a cell, you do not have a room to yourself in the beginning, you are with a lot of people. i knew there were things going on and the check ins, the top guard was always there, the warden, the deputy warden was

always there. i knew there was special treatment, let's keep are good for right now for later on. >> you eventually wrote to your dad and your mom. you wrote the letter you received back from your mom broke you, but it was your dad's letter was hardest to write to him. i am going to read a little bit about what he wrote back to you. he wrote, you still have a daddy and always will. i've always been there for you and i will be there for you would know what else is. you are still my baby no matter how old you are or how tall you get rid i pray for you every day for your health and return home. everything will work out just take care of yourself and what they ask of you. i'm glad you got another bed, because you needed a bed that you could fit in. i hope you're getting some sleep now. i know you're probably tired of answering so many letters, but let me know if you get this one even if all you write is i got

it remember, i love you and always will, no matter where you are. nothing and nobody can change that. your dad and mom are with you for life. don't forget that. >> talk about your relationship with your dad. >> our relationship is complex. some people do not understand it , that is my hero. it was hard for him raising a child like me, a little different than the average. he is legit my hero. he has done everything for me my career, when i first started off, when i was younger, he took me everywhere. there was nothing with the team mom, my dad was with me always. he drove me to every basketball tournament. for me, my biggest thing was i did not want to bring shame to our last name. he wrote me and told the i would never do that. that was a hard moment for me. to this day i feel like i did.

that was hard that was really hard. >> why do you feel that? i sensed that throughout the book. you blame yourself for this throughout the book. i did not get the sense that you stop doing that. why do you feel that? >> you take ownership of what happens. regardless if you meant to do it or not. that is something my dad instilled in me and that is something that i will always have, regardless of the situation i still say it is my fault and i feel like i have brought damage to our last name a little bit. everyone tells me to have grace to give yourself grace, it is so hard to give yourself grace, someone like me . >> i'm going to tell you the same thing you have to understand this was not your fault, it wasn't. you did not mean to do it. you packed quickly as someone who packs quickly and it was not your fault it year mom

called you ladybug, that's one of my favorite things, you put it in the book and i get to talk about it, she is the first person you came out to in junior high school. she took it very well and she was very cool. your dad did not. what was interesting to me, you start by writing how close you and your dad are and how you're fixing cars together and doing everything together and one would think he knows you better than anyone else. were you surprised that he was surprised, and were you surprised by his negative reaction? >> i was surprised. it is one of those things the family knew and they were waiting on me to say it, it was one of those things. it did not take until i got older and i looked at it from his side, his lens, the era that he grew up in, i'm not saying that it was right, i am saying that i understand why it was hard for him a little bit.

he was so worried about me and how the world was going to be on me. it was tough love, but he prepared me for life. he literally prepared me for life and everything. he just knew the uphill battle that it would be for me. i think that is why it was so hard. that is also why i understand and forgive him that's my dad, you only get one. >> that letter that he sent back was probably the greatest thing in the world. >> it was. i cherished that letter so much. hearing my dad say that, our relationship is great. i think he talked to my wife more than me now. i'm like, dad, hello, it's me. >> up next, more on my interview with brittney griner. her trial, why she pled hilty and life inside a russian drew lock.

visionworks. see the difference. choose advil liqui-gels for faster, stronger and longer-lasting relief than tylenol rapid release gels because advil targets pain at the source of inflammation. so for faster pain relief, advil the pain away. some people just know there's a better way to do things. like bundling your home and auto insurance with allstate. yeah, she knows. and some people... don't. like... come on. yikes! ughh... no. you know, there's a better way. save time and money by bundling your home and auto with allstate. you're in good hands with allstate. tamra, izzy, and emma... no one puts more love into logistics than these three.

you need them. they need a retirement plan. work with principal so we can help you with a plan that's right for your team. let our expertise round out yours. these days everyone is staring at screens, and watching their spending. good vision is more important than ever, but so is saving. that's why america's best includes a free eye exam when you buy two pairs of glasses for just $79.95. book an exam online today.

(♪♪) (♪♪) try dietary supplements from voltaren, for healthy joints.

more now of my recent interview with wnba star brittney griner, who spent 10 months in captivity in russia. >> let's talk about the trial. so, you eventually get moved to a place where you are with other women, you're not by yourself. you make friends, you have some people who can translate for you and they put you in with a

couple people who spoke english, one of them was a spy. i spotted her from the beginning i did not trust her from the first time you wrote about her. you do make some genuine friends and they are going stuff with you in the trial happens. your wife says plead guilty. get it done so you can be traded. the state department, the united states say plead innocent . how did you make that choice? if you are designated wrongly detained as mr. reid was and other people were who were detained, the normal course is to say i did not do it, i'm innocent, you decided to plead guilty, why? >> in the end, to be traded, even if you plead not guilty you have to reverse that you have to say that you are guilty you have to sign a paper saying you are guilty. taking ownership, it goes back to how i was raised and everything. i did not, and i made sure to

say that when i pled guilty, taking ownership for my actions. as much as i did not mean to do this and it was an accident -- >> did you believe that once you pleaded guilty your sentence would be something on the lower end of the spectrum? it was five to nine years potential, then they said the word, to me the word because i can't find it, in russia nine. >> when you heard that, after having done the right thing and taken ownership, you are in this court where they put you on display that is the way russian courts are and you are there and you give a statement that is heartfelt and said i did not mean to bring drugs into your country and yet you are given near the top of the sentence. when you heard that, how did you feel? >> i was shocked not shocked but i thought they were going

to give me 10 when they gave me nine i thought, one year off. as much as i thought they would be lenient, especially with everything that went into my trial and i did not cause any problems i did not make a spectacle and i followed the rules of their law and all of my character references and my team and the city stepping up and speaking on my good character and what i did for the city i thought, maybe there is a chance it will be on the lower spectrum. when they did not, i just sat there and stood there and let it sink in. >> how did you process the idea of spending nine years in what then would be a gulag. it would no longer be county or be with the women who became your support system. this is you going on your own by yourself. how did you process the idea of spending that much time in a

form present? >> i had to tell myself you are in inmate now. you cannot think this is wrong or i'm innocent, you just have to say i am an inmate and do what you have to do whatever that is going to be. >> it was tough. i start adding up the years and i think my dad will be this old and my wife, that's nine years and all the things that we plan to do, that's all on hold. nephews graduated, nieces in high school and i was like, my parents might not be here when i get out and that's when i started to break internally. that was really hard to swallow . >> it was also very cold, russia is notoriously cold this struck close to home because my husband is a very long dreadlocks you eventually cut them i will read what you wrote, every black woman is

going to feel this. you know a black woman only when you know her hair journey. the two are tightly interwoven. having to cut your locks, your hair looks great and we love your curls, cutting your locks, how did that feel? >> it was hard but more for my health. >> it was survival. >> it was survival. i was standing outside with wet hair and i was freezing and you were standing outside during checks, i could not do it. one thing you don't want to do is get sick. the number one thing is you do not want to get sick and prison. >> one thing that i read, every time there was a chance you have to go to the infirmary i was like, please don't go. >> i did not want to go in there. >> how much awareness did you have? you did not have your phone, you cannot call your wife, you only had your lawyers as your support system, how aware were

you that there was a campaign building back home to free you? celebrities were involved and it was a big deal. >> he would bring printouts for me to read, we called them takebacks. i would see different artists and actors and people in the public supporting me and my cause and fighting for me to come back and i was like, this is crazy. >> did you think it could work? >> i did. i did think it would work, but it was weird seeing it. normally you do not see that. normally when people see this abundance of love, unfortunately the person is no longer there. especially when you see your name on the court tabasco, you do not see that unless they are no longer with you. >> a lot of people made the point that if it was lebron james or a nba player the outcry would have been bigger and sooner. i started by saying this, it

literally would only be a black woman wnba player who could be in the situation. everything you went through from the anti- lgbtq bullying, to do you have sick thoughts, putting her as a spectacle and to the fact that you had to fly commercial rather than private and the fact that you had to play overseas at all because it is only wnba players who have to do that. >> unfortunately, yes. we are the only ones that have to go overseas to close that pay gap. it is a shame. i started out two years in china and went from china over to russia because they offered me the most and that is where i was able to make a living for my family. it would have been different. it could have been way different . they probably would have asked for autographs or

something, it would have been a different outcome. >> coming up, the politics of her return. why she felt like a pond and what she wrote to vladimir putin . my conversation with brittney griner continues after this. there new parodontax active gum repair breath freshener. clinically proven to help reverse the four signs of early gum disease. a new toothpaste from parodontax, the gum experts. ♪ ♪ welcome to the roots a ne of our legacy.om

where excellence, comfort, and electricity... are forever in bloom. welcome to beyond. the mercedes-maybach eqs suv.

annika. i found the bomb. ok johann. there should be a blue wire and a yellow wire. cut the blue one. they're both blue! visionworks. see the difference. ( ♪ ♪ ) start your day with nature made. the #1 pharmacist recommended vitamin and supplement brand. rsv is out there. for those 60 years and older protect against rsv with arexvy.

arexvy is a vaccine used to prevent lower respiratory disease from rsv in people 60 years and older. arexvy does not protect everyone and is not for those with severe allergic reactions to its ingredients. those with weakened immune systems may have a lower response to the vaccine. the most common side effects are injection site pain, fatigue, muscle pain, headache, and joint pain. i chose arexvy. rsv? make it arexvy. everybody wants super straight, super white teeth. they want that hollywood white smile. new sensodyne clinical white provides 2 shades whiter teeth and 24/7 sensitivity protection. i think it's a great product. it's going to help a lot of patients. you're watching a special edition of the readout. more on my exclusive interview with whitney greiner. >> you eventually wrote to vladimir putin. you wrote him a

letter. >> i did. >> it was a very careful letter. you are very careful in what you said in trying to make sure his ego was intact. >> really hard to do. >> what would you want to write to him? >> i don't think i can say what i want to say. >> this is cable. >> i did not have to write at all, i did not want to write him. it was carefully done and it ended up being two letters because they made me write one in russian which took me two hours to write because i do not write russian. it was more tracing the letter. trying to pump up someone's ego that already thinks they are on top of the world and the horrors that he does, not only to his own people, but on other people in the world, it was hard to do. >> at one point there was almost a competition to see who could get you out between the

current administration, the biden, harris administration and one donald j trump. because he has some connections to, not world wrestling federation but some athletic federations he thought, i can help you, i will fly over and get you out in the book you sent , anybody to get you out you were down with that. what do you make of the fact that after attempting to at least verbally say he was going to compete to get you out of russia, donald trump turns on you and whips up the crowd against you saying you should not have been the one traded, you should not have been the one the deal was made for it should have been paul whelan or someone else. essentially he sick the >> megan: -- maga mom on you. >> it was turned around and i was almost used again here in

the states for his administration. it was disheartening. i was like, at my lowest moment you want to try to use this as a game and when it does not work or someone tells you not to, whatever happened, now you want to flip it. come on. >> eventually you did get liberation, you got freedom you talk about that moment when you realize that a deal has been made. >> i was very happy. i will never forget them coming to get me from my workshop and telling me you are going home. you are leaving. i was thrilled and scared. it could fall apart at any moment. also happy because i was like, maybe it is me and paul's turn, when i get on the plane hopefully we are both on the plane. trevor went home and paul was not able to go and i was not able to go, my trial was still

going on. i was hoping that everyone in russia would come home. >> trevor we went and paul whelan's family were all in connection. your lawyers were all in contact with these families. that forms a bond, i can imagine, this was a group effort it was not just about getting one person out. >> it was a group effort. there is no way you go through this without a unit, without a family. without other families getting together and bringing families home. it really takes a village. it is a lot of emotions. it is hard to work through them. >> you spent 293 days in russia, in captivity in various places. what did you learn about yourself? >> i learned that i am more resilient than i thought. i was listening to all of the stories pops told me back in the day, he used to work in the prison system as well and he

would tell me stories about how certain inmates would treat him and how he would treat them with respect as well. i used that. i treated everyone with respect , even though they do not know what i'm saying, yes, ma'am, no, ma'am, yes, sir create you can see how some would treat you with respect that you deserve as a human and sometimes it did not work. >> you are in russia, you played there for seven years. did you have any inkling or hint of the kind of negativity toward you as a black person, as a woman, as a lgbtq person, did that ever show itself before this happened to you? did you have any hints? >> no. i am not oblivious. i saw other people experience it, you see other groups explicit and you see the laws that they

create, they were creating one as i was there against the lgbtq community. i was lucky to be with a team where we were vip . there was this one time in siberia there was a kid that called me the n word, trying to be cool. some kid saw it on tv or a song and we let them know that was not right. yeah. >> this does play up the disparities for the wnba and at your press conference that you said to all of those media people who were there when you are freed, i hope you come back and cover the wnba. we recently had a pretty spectacular ncaa final with two players who are definitely going to be top draft picks in the wnba. what do you think that should mean in terms of what kind of money wnba players like them

and yourself they are playing again and you are back with your team. do you think between what happened there and dawn staley becoming the queen of the ncaa, three-time championship coach, also an incredible player when she played, just her story and she was one of your big supporters. do you think of this moment we will have a new conversation about the treatment of women athletes? >> 100%. how can you not? they always want to grow in our face lower viewership's. our viewership's were higher than the men's tournament. all the hype and everything that's going on right now, it is an amazing time and we have to capitalize on that. >> up next, i will have more on the wnba stars memoir coming home which debuted number one on amazon's bestseller list. her message to those still being held a broad. broad. tha. ♪

[smoke alarm] recipes written by hand and lost to time... can now be analyzed and restored using the power of dell ai. preserving memories and helping to write new ones. ♪ an alternative to pills, voltaren is a clinically proven arthritis pain relief gel, which penetrates deep to target the source of pain with nonsteroidal anti-inflammatory medicine directly at the source. voltaren, the joy of movement. liberty mutual customized my car insurance and i saved hundreds. that's great. i know, i've bee telling everyone. baby: liberty. oh! baby: liberty. how many people did you tell? only pay for what you need. jingle: ♪ liberty. liberty. liberty. ♪ baby: ♪ liberty. ♪ these underwear are period-proof. and sneeze-proof. and sweat-proof. they're leakproof underwear, from knix. comfy & confident protection that feel just like normal.

with so many styles and colors to choose from, switching is easy at knix.com [coughing] copd isn't pretty. i'm out of breath, and often out of the picture. but this is my story. ( ♪♪ ) and with once-daily trelegy, it can still be beautiful. because with 3 medicines in 1 inhaler, trelegy keeps my airways open for a full 24 hours and prevents future flare-ups. trelegy also improves lung function, so i can breathe more freely all day and night. trelegy won't replace a rescue inhaler for sudden breathing problems. tell your doctor if you have a heart condition or high blood pressure before taking it. do not take trelegy more than prescribed. trelegy may increase your risk of thrush, pneumonia, and osteoporosis. call your doctor if worsened breathing, chest pain, mouth or tongue swelling, problems urinating, vision changes, or eye pain occur. ♪ what a wonderful world ♪ [laughing] ask your doctor about once-daily trelegy for copd

because breathing should be beautiful, all day and night. these days everyone is staring at screens, and watching their spending. good vision is more important than ever, but so is saving. that's why america's best includes a free eye exam when you buy two pairs of glasses for just $79.95. book an exam online today. everybody wants super straight, super white teeth. they want that hollywood white smile. new sensodyne clinical white provides 2 shades whiter teeth and 24/7 sensitivity protection. i think it's a great product. it's going to help a lot of patients.

back now with some of my final questions to wnba star, brittney griner. >> i want to talk about a couple of causes that you included in this book. you listed the still detained americans all around the world and the organization that is trying to get them home. talk about your involvement with that cause. >> bring our families home. the wnba, i give credit to them and my team for everything that

we have done last year and we will continue to do this year playing videos. one of the biggest thing is to get these families in front of the camera so we can get this coverage so people know. up until my detainment, i knew we had americans detained overseas, i did not understand how bad it was. regardless of what's going on, regardless of the crime, the alleged crime, these conditions and what these families are going through should never happen. it should not happen. with our coverage, we are using a platform for something good, something really good and giving these families a voice to be in front of america. >> do you have a message you want to send to those being held hostage around the world, if there some way they could get the message, what would you say? >> do not give up. do not give up. we are fighting and we are not going to give up. i will not give up. i keep saying i will borrow

time until my release date in october 2030. october 2030. i am not stopping. i am not stopping. we will make as much noise as we can and we will keep fighting to bring you home. >> the real necessity for people in your situation to get direct access to the white house. that was the key. that was the key for you, that is the key for the whelan family, that is the key for the reed family. how do you do that? >> everyone pick up your phone, pick up a pen and write your senator, right ear governor, right to the white house, right. flood their phones, be heard, be seen. >> president biden and vice president kamala harris got personally involved and they met personally with your wife. do you think their efforts were soon enough? effective enough? talk about their efforts to get you home. >> i want to think them and everything they did.

we got to see a different side of politics and how it all works and everything. they have a lot being thrown at them. a lot. it is the hardest job in the country, i think. i just want to thank them for never letting me or my wife feel like we were forgotten or not heard and i appreciate them for everything else and for the people they continue to bring home right now. >> i believe president biden called you first and then vice president harris. what were those conversations like? >> there were good print i remember him saying kiddo and i immediately felt younger. he was just so warm and so personal . same with ms. harris, so personal. i will never forget seeing ms. harris behind my wife when she was talking and she was looking so proud and i was so happy. >> i got the pdf version of your book so i can read it and

prepare for this, now i have a hard copy. i was able to turn to the last page, this is not in the pdf. >> no >> it was not. >> to my son, i pray that you learn from my hard time so that you can have a life with a little less pain in it. i love you. is this baby born wax >> not yet. you know you're having a boy? >> yes. >> what will it mean to you to be a mom? >> it will mean everything. you are doing it for somebody else. every movement, everything you do and everything you say, watching this person grow up into whoever they will become, i am so ready for that chapter. we both are and we are so excited. >> what advice would you give this baby boy about how to deal with difficult times? >> hold your head high and keep moving forward. you cannot please everyone. just as long as you stay true

to yourself, that's all that matters at night. >> brittney griner, i believe a lot of people will be buying your jersey. i believe the wnba will have its greatest season ever, i think you are a big part of it. it is heroic how you stood up for yourself and stood up for other people in the time of your greatest trauma. thank you for writing this book and thank you for coming and sitting down with me. god bless you. that baby boy comes, tell him he has a extra godmother. >> i will definitely do that. >> that is tonight's reidout you can follow me on tik tok, on instagram and follow our show for me on instagram and tiktok.