For the first time in her career, Brittney Griner faced the Phoenix Mercury in a WNBA game. Griner returned to Phoenix on Wednesday as a member of the Atlanta Dream and dominated her former team. She even licked her hand en route to helping the Dream earn a 90-79 win.After leaving the Mercury in free agency, Griner was back at the Footprint Center to continue the second half of the season. The 10-time All-Star turned back the clock to finish with 17 points and eight rebounds on 8-for-12 shooting in just 25 minutes of action.Griner punished her former team on the inside, with Kathryn Westbeld and DeWanna Bonner having their hands full. She was so pumped to face the Mercury that she licked her hand after a big play on the defensive end in the first quarter. You can watch the moment at the start of the video below. Brittney Griner entered the game averaging 10.2 points, 5.7 rebounds and 1.2 blocks per game. Allisha Gray led the way for the Atlanta Dream, finishing with 28 points, seven rebounds and six assists, while Jordin Canada added 14 points. On the other hand, DeWanna Bonner scored 18 points off the bench to lead the Phoenix Mercury in scoring. Satou Sabally only had 13 points in her return from an ankle injury. She was limited to just 20 minutes because the Mercury were easing her back slowly.Alyssa Thomas only had seven points, but she grabbed 11 boards and dished out nine assists. The Mercury have now lost back-to-back games and dropped to 15-8 for the season. The Dream improved to 14-10, with 20 games remaining on their schedule. Brittney Griner comments on returning to PhoenixBrittney Griner comments on returning to Phoenix. (Photo: IMAGN)Fans inside the Footprint Center showed a lot of love to Brittney Griner in her first game back in Phoenix. She was given a warm welcome by the fans, former teammates and even the front office. Diana Taurasi and Penny Taylor were on hand to watch Griner face the Mercury for the very first time in her career. "When I looked over, I saw D and Penny over there, I think that kind of ignited me a little bit," Griner said. "Just being back on the court that I basically started my career on and play the majority of it. It just felt good, like the crowd, seeing familiar faces, hearing old stories, signing jerseys that I've signed like a thousand times. ... I said I was going to hold my tears to the end, but they got me."The two teams are set to face each other two more times on Aug. 1 in Atlanta and Aug. 10 back in Phoenix.