No, Brittney Griner has not been kicked off Team USA | Fact check

The claim: Brittney Griner was ‘booted’ from Team USA

A June 18 Facebook post (direct link, archive link) shows a picture of WNBA player Brittney Griner wearing a Nike T-shirt with the word “USA” on it.

The text at the bottom of the picture reads, “Britney (sic) Griner Booted from Team USA for Misconduct: ‘We Can’t Allow That Kind of Behavior – The World is Watching.’”

The Facebook user writes in the caption: “This paves the way for Caitlin Clark to join the team. It also makes the team much more respectable."

Other Facebook posts shared the same headline, including one that was shared more than 200 times before it was deleted.

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Our rating: False

A spokesperson for Team USA said Griner remains on the team.

Griner one of 12 teammates to play in 2024 Olympics

The 2024 women’s basketball team members were announced on June 11, a group that included Griner. She and other WNBA players, including Diana Taurasi and A’ja Wilson, were shown in a Team USA video accepting the official invitation to join the roster.

But contrary to the social media claim, Griner was not kicked off the team. Team USA spokesman Michael Terry told USA TODAY the claim is untrue.

The story hyperlinked in a comment underneath the Facebook post claims Griner was released because of her “behavior,” but it does not make clear what behavior it is referring to.

It also claims that Griner’s exit paves the way for rookie WNBA player Caitlin Clark to join and that Clark “is expected to bring a fresh dynamic to the team.” But days before, it had been widely reported by sources, including USA TODAY, that she was not on this year’s roster.

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Team USA’s announcement of Griner drew criticism from some because of her decision in previous years to protest while the national anthem was played before WNBA games. Griner and other professional athletes demonstrated for racial justice following the police killings of Breonna Taylor and George Floyd.

Griner has said her time in a Russian prison changed her stance on the national anthem, though. She was arrested at an airport in the country when vape cartridges with hashish oil were allegedly found in her luggage. She was imprisoned for 10 months before the U.S. government arranged her release in a prisoner swap for an arms dealer.

USA TODAY reached out to the user who shared the post for comment but did not immediately receive a response.

Our fact-check sources:

• Michael Terry, June 20, Email exchange with USA TODAY

• Team USA, June 12, How They Were Told // 2024 USA Women's National Team

• CNN Sports, June 12, The reasons for and against Caitlin Clark’s exclusion from the Team USA Olympic roster

• CBS News, June 12, USA Basketball defends decision to leave Caitlin Clark off the 2024 Paris Olympics team

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This article originally appeared on USA TODAY: Brittney Griner was not 'booted' off of Team USA | Fact check