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What Had Happened Was: 8/12/16

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    Swimming – Women’s 100m Freestyle Final
    Simone Manuel (USA) of USA reacts after winning. REUTERS/Stefan Wermuth
    By Ryan Cortes Rhiannon Walker

    GAME. BLOUSES.

    Say it loud, say it proud and say it often today, y’all: #BlackGirlMagic.

    On Thursday night, Simone Manuel became the first African-American woman to win an individual Olympic medal in swimming. But she didn’t win just any medal, she took home gold.

    “I’m just so blessed to have a gold medal,” Manuel, 20, told NBC after the race. “This medal is not just for me. It’s for a whole bunch of people who came before me and have been an inspiration to me. … It’s for all the people after me who believe they can’t do it, and I just want to be an inspiration to others that you can do it.”

    After the race, Manuel took to the podium to field questions from the media, and she didn’t come with platitudes and clichés and niceties. She came with that real.

    She mentioned police brutality and said, “I think that this win helps bring hope and change to some of the issues that are going on in the world, but I mean, I went out there and swam as fast as I could, and my color just comes with the territory.

    “I would like there to be a day where there are more of us and it’s not ‘Simone, the black swimmer,’ ” Manuel added, “because the title ‘black swimmer’ makes it seem like I’m not supposed to be able to win a gold medal or I’m not supposed to be able to break records, and that’s not true because I work just as hard as anybody else. I want to win just like everybody else.”

    We prefer “Simone, #BlackGirlMagic,” ourselves.

    BLESSINGS!

    For the first time in his career, 2016 NBA champion and Finals MVP LeBron James will be paid like the king he is. The Cleveland Cavaliers forward will be the top earner in the league for THE FIRST TIME EVER. Crazy, right? We knew it was going to happen after the block heard around the world to keep Game 7 tied in the closing seconds against the Golden State Warriors.

    SOCIAL STATUS

     

    Seeing as this is the last summer President Barack Obama and his family will be in he White House, it’s only right that we enjoy his final presidential daytime and nighttime summer playlist. Take a gander at what the leader of the free world is listening to during the dog days.

    FOR THE CULTURE

    Bad Boys 3 is coming? Bad Boys 3 is coming.

    How fatherhood, family and fame have shaped rapper Future, by Meghan Garvey over at MTV.

    Is Tama Gucci the voice Miami R&B needs?

    Nate Parker — the writer, director, producer and star of the upcoming film The Birth of a Nation — accepted a Sundance award and created a youth fellowship.

    TOP THREE TWEETS

    Every morning we’ll hit you here with the best of what we saw on social media the previous night. Why? Why not?

    1. MT. MICHAEL PHELPS

    2. KIRK COUSINS BRINGING THE COOK OUT

    3. SEE THE TRANSLATION

    #ICYMI

    On Thursday night, our brother Marc J. Spears unleashed his list of the top 10 NBA games to watch next season. The schedule is filled with heat but here are two of the best matchups:

    Return of KD to OKC: Golden State at Oklahoma City. Date: Feb. 11, 2017

    After nine years with the Thunder franchise, Durant shocked the NBA world by signing as a free agent with, of all teams, the Warriors. Golden State overcame a 3-1 series deficit to defeat Durant and the Thunder and win the 2016 Western Conference finals. It is way too early for Thunder fans to appreciate what the 2014 NBA MVP did for the franchise, so boos should be resounding during his awkward return to Oklahoma City.

    A LeBron James Christmas: Golden State at Cleveland. Date: Dec. 25, 2016

    The NBA’s popular Christmas slate will be highlighted by a rematch of the last two NBA Finals. The Warriors will have to uncomfortably play under the Cavaliers’ 2016 NBA championship banner. Expect a joyous Cavaliers crowd for both holiday and championship reasons.

    PICTURE PERFECT

    Ryan Cortes is a staff writer for The Undefeated. Lemon pepper his wings.

    Rhiannon Walker is an associate editor at The Undefeated. She is a drinker of Sassy Cow Creamery chocolate milk, an owner of an extensive Disney VHS collection, and she might have a heart attack if Frank Ocean doesn't drop his second album.

    This Story Tagged: LeBron James What Had Happened Was Simone Biles Michael Phelps Simone Manuel