THERE ARE growing calls for the immediate release of a US basketball star who has been detained by Russia for the past three weeks.

Brittney Griner, who has played for a Russian team for eight years, was arrested at Moscow’s Sheremetyevo International Airport shortly before the outbreak of war in Ukraine, allegedly for carrying drugs.

There is widespread scepticism over Russia’s claims as Griner would have been extremely familiar with the country’s rules.

And suspicion is growing that president Vladimir Putin wants to use the basketball player as a pawn in a geo-political game.

News of the arrest emerged this week on Russian state media, prompting questions about whether the US government knew of Griner’s detention during the past three weeks but failed to make this public.

6 foot 9 inch Griner, one of the most successful players in the game, was stopped at the airport after officials allegedly found vape pens containing cannabis oil.

US lawyer and blogger Adrienne Lawrence said: “I won’t take a police report from Team Putin at face value—especially a report about “finding” drugs on a Black person. 

“This wasn’t Griner’s first rodeo in Russia. She’s a regular there and knew the rules very well. She may have made a mistake but I don’t know.

“She shouldn’t be a pawn. We also must bear in mind that Griner is a Black, gender non-conforming, proud lesbian. She’s everything these conservative, hyped-up Russian orthodox, white supremacist, warmongers hate.”

Congresswoman Sheila Jackson Lee has called for Griner’s immediate release, saying: “Please, allow Miss Griner to leave. Allow her legal representation to handle her matters.”

The WNBA star earns $1million a year playing for the UMMC Ekaterinburg, in the Russian city of Yekaterinburg, during the US off-season. This is four times what she earns playing for Phoenix Mercury in Arizona. Many other WNBA players also play in Russia each year.

Today Russian TV broadcast a custody image of Griner, a two-times Olympic US gold medalist, and CCTV of her being stopped at the airport.

White House Press Secretary Jen Psaki told reporters she couldn’t address the specific situation because of privacy concerns, but said that president Joe Biden was aware.

The players’ wife, Cherelle Griner, wrote on social media: “My heart, our hearts, are all skipping beats everyday that goes by without hearing from you. There are no words to express this pain. I’m hurting, we’re hurting. We await the day to love on you as a family.”

African Americans have been expressing concern that the level of mainstream media coverage about Griner’s detention is lower than would be the case for a white elite sportsperson.

Griner, 31 from Texas, a vocal supporter of Black Lives Matter, has previously called on the WNBA not to play the national anthem at games.