Ahead of FIBA World Cup, Nurse recalls 'hell on earth' WNBA season without Griner

The early-August day Brittney Griner was sentenced to nine years in a Russian prison, Kia Nurse and her Phoenix Mercury teammates watched the heart-wrenching court proceedings play out on their phones in their locker-room.

The Mercury hosted the Connecticut Sun later that day, and the two teams locked arms at centre court pre-game for a tearful 42 seconds of silence — a nod to Griner's Phoenix jersey number.

"It was really hard to play that game. I don't know how my teammates did it. It was really hard to play an entire season without her," Nurse said.

The 26-year-old guard from Hamilton returns to Canada's national team at the FIBA Women's World Cup in Australia, her first official action since tearing her ACL in her right knee on Oct. 6.

Nurse fought back tears on Monday as she recalled the darkest days of "a hell on earth" season for the Mercury.

"BG is the best of the best when it comes to human beings," she said of Griner, an eight-time WNBA all-star, who was convicted of drug possession and smuggling after less than a gram of cannabis oil was found in her luggage.

"It was a lot this season to not have her on the court, to not have her spirit, her energy around … and the fact that she's not home yet is disheartening. We did our best as a team to make sure that her story was told, to make sure that her name was upfront as much as possible … but you go to practice and you wonder what she's doing."

The Mercury continued Griner's BG Heart and Sole Shoe Drive in her absence, visiting all 12 WNBA markets.

"We're continuing to keep her in our prayers, to keep her family in our prayers, continuing to make sure she knows that she's loved, and she's not forgotten and putting as much emphasis as we can on those who have