What Had Happened Was Trending stories on the intersections of race, sports & culture

Daily Dose: 9/7/17

Gucci Mane’s long walk to freedom

3:49 PMJust want to thank everyone who tuned in to Around The Horn on Wednesday. It was a long, fun trip to get there, for those of you who don’t know. Also, I filled in Thursday on The Dan Le Batard Show, if you want to check that out here.

Hurricane Irma is already doing major damage. In the Caribbean, the storm has basically destroyed Barbuda, and 13 people are already dead. This event has brought quite a bit of turmoil to the sports world already, with various games and things having been moved around because meteorologists are calling it basically the biggest storm of all time. In Miami-Dade County, Florida, alone, it appears that 400,000 people are at risk of getting hit by the winds and rain. That Miami Dolphins-Tampa Bay Buccaneers game might not be the only one delayed in the coming weeks.

New York City is an interesting beast. Having lived there when I was 18 years old, I didn’t love it. Before that, having visited and stayed for so many times with family, I had. But now, being an adult and it being a necessary part of life, I can deal with it. But the so-called charm of the city versus what it actually has to offer is always an interesting battle. That said, taxicabs are still the domain of reality when it comes to basically all walks of life. This interview with a New York cabbie who photographed his customers for decades is really a fun one to watch.

Gucci Mane’s come-up is officially complete. We all know the story. After landing himself in jail for his longest stint yet, he decided to make a turnaround. He relied on his girl Keyshia Ka’oir, a fitness-product maven, to help him revamp his life, and now it’s in the clear. According to Fader, Big Guwop has done so well on his probation that it is being terminated entirely in September. To be honest, I didn’t even know this was a thing. What a year it’s been for East Atlanta Santa.

The Los Angeles Clippers are going full Hollywood. That sounds odd, of course, because they’re already in Los Angeles. But when it comes to the bright lights and famous people, that’s usually the territory of the Los Angeles Lakers. But that doesn’t mean the Clips can’t make it happen when they need to. Instead of having the usual scorers table setup, they’ve broken that up to create something they call “star seating.” While in theory this looks like a decent idea, in practice I imagine it’ll be a logistical disaster on many levels.

Free Food

Coffee Break: For all of the things that people had to say about the Seattle Seahawks’ Michael Bennett and everything that happened in Las Vegas recently with the police, there are still plenty of people who have to explain why they’re protesting, to make people happy.

[protected-iframe id=”f33fc016de54288d335da7565e6c2fc9-84028368-105107678″ info=”//players.brightcove.net/2157889318001/default_default/index.html?videoId=5566211242001″ frameborder=”0″ allowfullscreen=””]

Snack Time: A$AP Rocky never ceases to amaze me. His newest exploit is a signature luxury line of vape pens that even have the wood grain finish. For the distinguished smoker, presumably.

Dessert: Even though I am one of these people, reading this gives me anxiety.

Daily Dose: 9/6/17

Seahawks’ Michael Bennett says he was threatened by police

2:22 PMAll right, kiddos. Big day here at All Day. I’ll be making my debut on Around The Horn on Wednesday at 5 p.m. on ESPN. That would make your boy the 36th panelist in show history, which, heck, I’m proud of. Tune in.

If it ain’t one thing, it’s another. That’s what my mom used to always say, and when it comes to hurricanes, that’s how many Americans feel now. While rescue efforts are clearly still very much underway in Texas regarding Hurricane Harvey, evacuation procedures are underway down in Florida now that it looks like Hurricane Irma is going to touch down soon. It’s also expected to bowl through Puerto Rico and the Caribbean, and already the NFL has moved a game off its schedule from this week to accommodate the storm. Good luck, all.

Over the past few months, we’ve heard it asked where’s Obama? While President Donald Trump has done his best to dismantle nearly everything his predecessor did, albeit not with very much tact or success, a lot of people feel like they should have been hearing more from 44 about his legacy. Well, for one, he certainly doesn’t owe us anything at this point. He gave more than enough time and energy to this country, so he can definitely chill. But he did have something to say about the repeal of Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals, and it was quite a bit, at that.

The utility of a fanny pack is obvious. A bag that you can carry around your waist that keeps your valuables, all while your hands and arms stay free from accessories. A belt with a pocket. And while they were all the rage 25 years ago, until the suburban parent and tourist crowd took over the whole swag, some people say they’re making a comeback. Various high-end retailers and streetwear companies are coming out with modified versions of these things, including Supreme, which means, yeah, they’re back.

Michael Bennett is not the one to mess with. The outspoken NFL player has been extremely vocal about his feelings regarding what it’s like to be black in America and has never shied away from a conversation about the matter. He’s been right with Colin Kaepernick all along the way, but the latest incident he experienced has caused him to take action. In a long letter posted on Twitter, Bennett described a situation in which he felt he might lose his life at the hands of an officer for no reason. He plans on suing. The video is tough to watch.

Free Food

Coffee Break: The fashion industry is known for how difficult it can be to break through the ranks if you don’t fit a certain look, style, body type or whatever. Even as people become more accepting globally, the industry itself remains extremely rigid. This convo with a group of them about exclusion is worth your time.

Snack Time: ALERT — we have a trailer for The Magic School Bus. Please inform all young parents who are looking to simultaneously relive their childhoods and teach their kids at the same time.

Dessert: I know it feels like dystopia. But this list of flicks about that life is actually quite fascinating.

Daily Dose: 9/5/17

Local billionaire buys Houston Rockets

2:12 PMAll right, y’all, the fun is over. Summer is done, the kids are back in school and it’s time to get cracking on everything that you spent all summer preparing for. But, if you want to hear the last Morning Roast, check it out here.

President Donald Trump doesn’t care if you grew up here. It doesn’t matter to him that you may be one of the most functioning members of society. Nor does it particularly matter to him that losing you might actually hurt him. Trump wants to deport anyone who is here illegally, including children who were brought here by no choice of their own. Officials say that 45 is likely to phase out the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals immigration policy. Beyond the cruelty, some think it’s actually a really short-sighted political policy.

When it comes to disasters, sports can be healing. We’ve all seen how the Houston Texans’ J.J. Watt has put his efforts toward raising money for flood and hurricane victims. We’ve also seen games moved around the country as a result of weather damage. But think about the kids on the ground in Houston, who don’t have the opportunity to just up and play elsewhere. Seasons will be destroyed, effectively. Check out this story of one high school whose football team was surprised by former NFL stars Michael Strahan and Deion Sanders to help inspire them.

I’m not really sure where I’d be without Apple Music. Sure, there are a lot of streaming music services out there, but for whatever reason, Apple’s always felt like the one that was most legit and most likely to last in a landscape that was littered with similar sites trying to do the same thing. It also didn’t hurt that its platform was the easiest to integrate with its products. I’m listening to it right now, as a matter of fact. Welp, now the annual Apple Music Festival in London is done after 10 years.

$2.2B can buy you a lot of arugula. The Houston Rockets were just sold to a guy named Tilman Fertitta who, if you don’t know, goes by the title of “local billionaire.” If you’ve been paying attention to their games over the past few years, you’ve seen him on the sidelines. This is particularly strange timing, considering what’s going on there, tbh. I’m not sure that announcing this right now is exactly the PR intro that Fertitta wants to the rest of the NBA world. Anyway, here are the details.

Free Food

Coffee Break: When you’re overseas, navigating your way through another language can be a tough go. But with these earbuds, you can basically just speak and hear your own language, thanks to the built-in real-time translator. I can see this having both good and really bad sides.

Snack Time: I’m not huge on dressing in disguise to pull pranks, but this bit with Kevin Hart in old-man makeup with Trey Songz and a friend in the back seat is full-blown hilarious.

Dessert: Don’t tell your wife you’re going to do one thing, then do another. Homey learned the hard way.