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She has signed with the Colorado State University.
Celebration and relief reverberated through the tight-knit world of US women's basketball whose members had rallied for her release for months.
Last week, Russian authorities transferred Griner from a detention center outside Moscow and she is now on her way to an undisclosed penal colony, her legal team said on Wednesday.
Griner and her lawyers had asked for acquittal or at least a reduction in her sentence, which they said was disproportionate to the offence and at odds with Russian judicial practice.
The two-time Olympic gold medallist was arrested on February 17 at a Moscow airport with vape cartridges containing cannabis oil in her luggage, and was sentenced on August 4 to nine years in a penal colony on drug smuggling charges.
Her sentencing could now pave the way for a US-Russia prisoner swap that would include the 31-year-old athlete and an imprisoned Russian who was once a prolific arms dealer.
Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov expressed surprise at the public remarks from Blinken. Russia has cautioned the US that such discussions are best conducted in private.
Griner was speaking at the second hearing of her trial on a narcotics charge that carries a sentence of up to 10 years in prison, days after she urged US President Joe Biden to secure her release.
Griner, who had been playing for a Russian club during the off-season, was arrested at a Moscow airport on February 17 when a search of her luggage allegedly revealed cannabis oil vape cartridges.
Griner, who was held at a Moscow airport on February 17 when a search of her luggage allegedly revealed multiple cannabis oil vape cartridges, went on trial on Friday and could face up to 10 years in a Russian jail.