U.S. reportedly offering prisoner trade with Russia in exchange for Texan Brittney Griner

WNBA star and two-time Olympic gold medalist Brittney Griner holds images while standing in a cage in a courtroom before a hearing in Russia on Wednesday. (Credit: Alexander Zemlianichenko/Pool via REUTER)

The Biden administration has offered a deal to Russia to bring home Brittney Griner, a WNBA basketball player from Houston facing a trial on drug charges, and Paul Whelan, another American held in Russia, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday.

As part of the deal, Russia would release Griner and Whelan in exchange for Viktor Bout, a Russian arms trafficker imprisoned in the U.S., CNN reported. A senior administration official told the news outlet that the deal has the backing of President Joe Biden and is expected to be “successful based on a history of conversations with the Russians.”