WNBA star Brittney Griner was found guilty on drug charges by a Russian court on Thursday, concluding a trial that has captured national attention and reached the highest levels of U.S. diplomacy.

Why it matters: Griner's conviction comes nearly six months after she was arrested at a Moscow airport in February, when Russian authorities said they found a vape cartridge with hashish oil in her luggage.

Former President Donald Trump lashed out Sunday at American WNBA star Brittney Griner as “spoiled,” and indicated he wouldn’t make any deals to get her out of prison in Russia because she “makes a lot of money.”

Griner was arrested in Moscow in February as she entered the country for a tournament when officials discovered vape cartridges with cannabis oil in her luggage.

Trump claimed on the Clay Travis & Buck Sexton Show that Griner entered Russia “loaded up with drugs.”

Secretary of State Antony Blinken spoke by phone to Russian Foreign Minister Sergey Lavrov on Friday in the highest-level known contact between the two sides since Russia invaded Ukraine, with Blinken urging Russia to accept a deal to win the release of American detainees Brittney Griner and Paul Whelan.

Russian officials gave no public hint whether Blinken had made any headway, only issuing a chiding statement afterward urging the U.S. to pursue the Americans’ freedom through “quiet diplomacy, without releases of speculative information.”

Trevor Reed, a former Marine from Texas who served nearly three years in a Russian prison before he was freed in a prison swap this spring, said he is "cautiously optimistic" that a similar deal can be worked out in the high-profile cases of two other Americans currently detained in Russia.

Secretary of State Antony Blinken announced this week that the U.S. has offered Russia a proposal to bring WNBA star Brittney Griner and former Marine Paul Whelan home.

The U.S. has offered a deal to Russia aimed at bringing home WNBA star Brittney Griner and another jailed American, Paul Whelan, Secretary of State Antony Blinken said Wednesday. In a sharp reversal of previous policy, Blinken also said he expects to speak with his Kremlin counterpart for the first time since before Russia invaded Ukraine to discuss the deal and other matters.

WNBA star Brittney Griner, who has been detained in Russia on drug charges since February, could return to the U.S. after Secretary of State Antony Blinken revealed Wednesday that the Biden administration has offered a "substantial proposal" for her return that includes American Paul Whelan. 

The former U.S. Marine freed from a Russian prison in April said he believes President Joe Biden isn’t doing enough to bring basketball star Brittney Griner or corporate executive Paul Whelan home.

Trevor Reed, who was released in a prisoner exchange for Russian drug trafficker Konstantin Yaroshenko after having served more than two years behind bars, said in an interview that he believes the White House can quickly secure the release of U.S. citizens in Russian prisons and jails.

The White House announced Tuesday an executive order aimed at bolstering the administration's efforts to "bring hostages and wrongfully detained United States Nationals home," including sanctioning individuals who are involved in hostage-taking.

Driving the news: "This [executive order] expands the tools available to deter and disrupt hostage-taking and wrongful detentions," the White House said in a statement.

“U.S. basketball star Brittney Griner pleaded guilty to a drugs charge in a Russian court [last] Thursday but denied she had intentionally broken the law… Griner, a two-time Olympic gold medallist, was detained in February at Moscow's Sheremetyevo airport with vape cartridges containing hashish oil, which is illegal in Russia, and has been kept in custody since.” (Reuters)

American basketball star Brittney Griner pleaded guilty Thursday to drug possession charges on the second day of her trial in a Russian court in a case that could see her sentenced to up to 10 years in prison.

The abrupt guilty plea by the Phoenix Mercury center and two-time Olympic gold medalist came amid a growing chorus of calls for Washington to do more to secure her freedom nearly five months after her arrest in February amid rising tensions between the U.S. and Russia over Ukraine.