Brittney Griner - Viktor Bout exchange.

Is it possible that it was an all well orchestrated political maneuver by the GRU (KGB enshrouded).

The Russians had Paul Whelan arrested for espionage. It is too complicated to explain the connection between Paul Whelan and the arresting actions by the GRU plus he has only been in prison for four years.
The Russians wanted Viktor Bout so bad they came out with a great scheme to get him back.
Bout knows too much of the international arms dealings implicating the Kremlin and other nations. It has been reported that Bout has close ties to Russian's former Deputy Prime Minister Igor Sechin, a business partner and friend of Vladimir Putin. It also has been reported that in the 80s both, Sechin and Bout served in the Soviet military in Africa.
NOBODY, NOBODY in Russia does business in the international market without the approval from Putin. Bout knows where the money is and who benefited from it. That silence was the fuse that created the exchange for Brittney Griner. For over a decade, Bout has kept his mouth shut and refused to cooperate with U.S. authorities.
As we saw in the movie "Bridge of Spies" That silence could be rewarded and also if there is no hope for release that same silence could be a bargaining tool for the US authorities to present Bout with a hope for better treatment in Little Guantanamo, IL.
The Russians knew that Bout's silence was a time bomb and Griner presented that opportunity for an exchange. The tall, black, lesbian, and American gave the Russians a great opportunity to exploit the US outrage of an minor and idiotic charge of CBD possession covering the dealings of a political exchange.

Griner was targeted for the specific use of a prisoner exchange.

Let me know if I am ODF...... (Out there flapping) or not.

R.