Is Brittney Griner Transgender? Why Most People Get the Facts Wrong

Is Brittney Griner Transgender? Why Most People Get the Facts Wrong

If you’ve spent more than five minutes on social media lately, you’ve probably seen the rumors. They’re everywhere. Short clips of a post-game interview where her voice sounds incredibly deep. Photos of her without a shirt on. Speculative threads about her height and wingspan. The question is Brittney Griner transgender seems to follow her more than her actual stats on the court, which is wild considering she’s one of the most decorated athletes in WNBA history.

People love a good mystery. But honestly, most of the "mystery" here is just a mix of internet echo chambers and a basic misunderstanding of how diverse female bodies can be.

The Reality of the "Deep Voice" Clips

The most common "proof" people point to is her voice. It's a baritone. It's deep. It's definitely deeper than what most people expect from a woman.

When a video of Griner speaking courtside went viral again in 2025, the comment sections were a disaster. People were "shook." But if you actually look at the physiology, it’s not that complicated. Brittney Griner is 6 feet 9 inches tall. Think about the physics of that for a second. A person that size has a larger thoracic cavity and longer vocal cords. Naturally, that creates a deeper pitch and more resonance.

It’s just science.

She’s been open about this since her high school days at Nimitz High. In her 2015 memoir, In My Skin, she talked about how she was bullied as a kid for "sounding like a boy." She even mentioned that her parents were concerned enough to take her to doctors to check for a pituitary tumor when she was young. The tests came back normal. She was just a very tall girl with a very deep voice.

Fact-Checking the Gender Rumors

Let’s be blunt: Brittney Griner is a cisgender woman.

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She was assigned female at birth, and she has never identified as anything else. There is no "hidden transition." There are no secret records. In fact, her entire life has been documented in the public eye since she was a teenager dunking in Houston.

  • Birth Records: Her parents, Raymond and Sandra Griner, have been public figures throughout her career. There is zero evidence suggesting she wasn’t born a girl.
  • WNBA Eligibility: The WNBA has strict protocols regarding eligibility. Griner has played in the league since 2013. She has competed in multiple Olympics (winning gold in 2016, 2020, and 2024).
  • The Russian Detainment: During her ten-month nightmare in a Russian prison in 2022, she was subjected to intense scrutiny by a foreign government that is notoriously unfriendly to LGBTQ+ individuals. Even there, she was processed and held as a woman.

The internet "evidence" usually consists of blurry photos or purposefully misleading headlines from YouTube "news" channels. You've probably seen those thumbnails with red arrows pointing at her throat or chest. It’s classic clickbait.

Why the Confusion Persists

So why do people keep asking?

Society has a very narrow view of what "feminine" looks like. If a woman is 6'9", flat-chested, and wears men’s clothing, some people's brains just short-circuit. They assume there must be a "secret."

Griner has leaned into her androgyny. She prefers men’s clothes. She’s a "daddy’s girl" who likes working on cars. She’s a queer Black woman who doesn’t fit the "pageant queen" mold of traditional femininity. But none of those things make her transgender.

"Yo, she's a man! But hey, that’s my body and I look the way I look. People are either going to accept me for who I am or they’re not." — Brittney Griner, ESPN Magazine (2015)

She’s been saying this for over a decade. She isn't hiding anything. She literally posed for the ESPN Body Issue to show exactly what her body looks like. No surgeries, no "tucking," just a 6'9" athlete with a lean, muscular build.

The Impact of Misinformation

Misinformation isn't harmless. For Griner, these rumors have been a source of bullying since she was in middle school. It’s a way to de-legitimize her success. If people can convince themselves she isn't "actually" a woman, they don't have to respect her dominance on the court.

It's a pattern we see with other athletes too. Remember the stuff people said about Serena Williams? Or Caster Semenya? When a woman is "too" good or "too" strong, the first instinct for some is to question her gender. It's a tired trope.

Where She Stands Today

As of 2026, Griner is still a force in the WNBA. She’s now a parent, having welcomed a son, Bash, with her wife Cherelle in 2024.

She’s moved past the noise. While the internet continues to argue over 10-second clips of her voice, she’s focused on her family and her career. She’s used her platform to advocate for other Americans detained abroad and for LGBTQ+ youth who feel like they don't fit in.

The bottom line is pretty simple. Being different isn't the same as being "stealth." Brittney Griner has lived her entire life in the open.


What You Can Do Next

Instead of falling for the clickbait, here is how you can get the real story:

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  1. Read her own words: Pick up her latest book, Coming Home (2024), where she goes into detail about her identity and her time in Russia. It's a much more reliable source than a TikTok rumor.
  2. Look at the track record: Review her NCAA and WNBA history. She has been subject to standard athletic drug and gender testing for nearly 20 years.
  3. Check the source: If a "news" video has a sensationalist title like "DNA Secret Exposed," check if it’s from a verified journalist or a gossip channel looking for views. Usually, it's the latter.

Understanding the difference between gender identity, gender expression, and biological reality helps clear up about 99% of the confusion surrounding Griner. She’s a woman who happens to be 6'9" with a deep voice. That’s it. That’s the whole story.