Brittney Griner reenergized with Dream, eyes L.A. Olympics - ESPN

Brittney Griner says she feels reenergized by her fresh start with the Atlanta Dream after 11 seasons with the Phoenix Mercury and has set a goal of playing at the Summer Olympics in Los Angeles in 2028.

«It's a goal of mine,» Griner told ESPN in an extended interview this week as she prepares for her debut with the Dream on Friday night against the Washington Mystics. «It hasn't been in the U.S. for a while now, so I think to be able to play at the Olympics in your home country would be amazing. My parents have never been to the Olympics. So I'm going to strive for it and try to do what I need to do so I can get that call-up or at least be at the camp and help out the ones that will go, whatever it's going to be.»

Griner, 34, played sparingly for Team USA as it won a gold medal at the Paris Olympics. But the three-time gold medalist says her offseason move to the Dream has her feeling stronger mentally and physically than she has in years.

«You get comfortable and sometimes you don't want to get out of that bubble,» Griner said. «But it's like the one thing that you definitely need. Life will push you out of that bubble sometimes, and I'm just glad that I finally did it. I'm glad I did it and came here.»

Griner told ESPN that she wasn't looking to leave the Mercury after last season, and expected that she'd have the same opportunity to retire as a member of the team that drafted her No. 1 in 2013 as her longtime teammate, Diana Taurasi.

But things changed when the Mercury informed her before free agency that they were likely going in a different direction. Phoenix ended up revamping its roster by trading for forwards Satou Sabally and Alyssa Thomas.

«I was doing everything as if I was going to still have that jersey