Brittney Griner, the top pick in the most recent WNBA Draft by the Phoenix Mercury, was given the Best College Athlete award at Wednesday night's ESPY Awards show, but was not able to avoid vicious taunts on social media.
One Twitter user posted, "My pick for Best Male Athlete at tonight's #ESPYS? Easy, Brittney Griner." The six feet, eight inch tall, 208-lb. center recently admitted to The Los Angeles Times that she has been taunted her whole life for her size, and that the rude comments no longer get to her.
"I just stood there and took it. I was humiliated. The whole school was laughing at me," she said. "I was always taller, my feet were always bigger and my voice was deeper. When I was younger, it really bothered me to the point where I was like 'I don't even want to be alive; why am I getting treated like that?'" But as I got older, I started caring less."
Griner has clearly risen above the hate spewed her way. At Baylor she became the first player in women's college hoops history to amass 2,000 points and 500 blocked shots. She led Baylor to an undefeated season that culminated in a title, reached last season's Final Four, has secured an endorsement deal with Nike, and has the led the Mercury to an 8-7 record, third in the West.
As a rookie Griner is third on the Mercury in points per game (14.9), first by a mile in blocks per game (2.83), and tied for first in rebounds with 6.4 a night. She has also become one of the WNBA's top draws because of her ability to consistently dunk the basketball with authority, a rare skill in women's hoops.
She also has assumed a position at the forefront of homosexuality in sports, becoming one of the first professional athletes in team sports be openly gay.
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