Sports
At the Paris Olympics, the power of black women was revealed at an important moment
PARIS — The U.S. women’s basketball team dominated the Olympics on Sunday, defeating France 67-66.
It was the eighth consecutive Olympic gold medal for the women’s team, which has not lost at the Games since 1992. Sunday’s victory was also the 61st consecutive Olympic victory in 32 years.
In the city where black dancer and singer Josephine Baker became a legend, the band’s performance complemented the show’s display of women’s strength usually and black American women particularly.
Team USA forward A’ja Wilson, who had the most points in the match — 21 — admitted she didn’t expect anything less.
“I’m not surprised at all because when it comes to getting the job done and the task done, a woman will always rise to the occasion and get it done,” she said. “When it’s time to shine in those big lights, we’ll always come out on top because we’re used to it.”
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The dominance of the U.S. women’s team was evidence of that strength.
Sydney McLaughlin-Levrone won two gold medals and broke her own Olympic record in the 400-meter hurdles. Sprinter Gabby Thomas won the 200-meter dash and was on the winning 4×100-meter and 4×400-meter relay teams, becoming the second American runner to win three gold medals at the Olympics since Allyson Felix in 2012. Tara Davis-Woodhall won gold in the long jump. Sha’Carri Richardson won silver in the 100-meter dash and ran a lightning-fast leg to assist the women’s 4×100 relay win gold. The women’s 4×400 relay nearly set a world record. Lauren Scruggs made history by becoming the first black American woman to win an individual medal in fencing. The women’s gymnastics team, led by sensational Simone Biles, showed their dominance by winning gold in the team final and collecting seven total medals in the individual events.
At a moment in American history when a black woman, Vice President Kamala Harris, is running for president of the United States, will spectacular performances — especially by black women at the Olympics — help Harris return to the States? If you think that athletes don’t listen to the political winds at home, you’re kidding yourself.
All you needed to do was read Biles’ social media post last week after she won the individual gold medal. Biles posted “I love my black job” with a heart emoji on Aug. 2. The post was a not-so-subtle dig at former President Donald Trump, who has been slammed for saying that “black jobs” are held by undocumented immigrants.
Before the Olympics began, U.S. basketball point guard Stephen Curry spoke of his support for Harris. Curry and Biles remind us that athletes reach a key group of young voters and potential voters. Athletes can play a bigger than expected role in voter registration campaigns and constructing excitement, especially for Harris.
Racism and misogyny are very much alive and well in the United States. This was no more evident than in the response to gymnast Jordan Chiles winning the individual bronze medal in the women’s freestyle after U.S. coach Cecile Landi called for her to maneuver up from fifth to 3rd place (International Olympic Committee he has since announced (The bronze medal is awarded to Ana Barbosu of Romania, which U.S. Olympic officials are appealing.) The Chiles episode was a multi-faceted comedy of errors that resulted in mistakes that broke the hearts of two deserving young ladies — first Barbosu, and now Chiles, who was the victim of a refereeing error.
The second and more disturbing element was the racial and gender-based vitriol directed at Chiles on social media. The vitriol was so vicious that Chiles was forced to depart social media for the sake of her mental health.
The Olympics might be the last semblance of global unity, and positively of unity in the United States, heading into what is certain to be a divisive election campaign for Trump and Harris. The former president has already signaled his intention to achieve for racist tropes and misogyny.
“This election is going to come down to gender,” said Nadia Rawlinson, co-owner of the WNBA’s Chicago Sky. “Are you going to show support or are you just going to speak up because it seems appropriate, especially for men who feel disempowered and challenged by women who have that kind of influence?”
Kamil Krzaczynski/NBAE via Getty Images
I met Rawlinson on Sunday on my solution to the women’s gold-medal basketball game. While she is a staunch supporter of Harris, Rawlinson is a much bigger advocate for women, women’s empowerment and women in power, all of which might be important in the upcoming election.
“I care deeply about women. I care deeply about seeing black people win,” she said. “I care deeply about creating opportunity and access. And that can happen across multiple platforms.”
Rawlinson attended Stanford University and earned an MBA from Harvard University. She has worked in the tech industry in Silicon Valley. At Slack Technologies, Inc., she was part of the management team that received a buyout as part of the $27.7 billion sale of Salesforce in 2021, “which allowed me to have the capital to say, ‘Where can I have a bigger impact than just me?’” she said.
She looked to the WNBA, which has historically been at the forefront of social justice initiatives and activism. Rawlinson believed the WNBA was a spot where she could make a difference.
“Eighty percent of the people on the field are African American,” she said. “A large number of those people identify as LGBTQIA. The core tenet of the league is equality, access to opportunity, fighting for justice, having a seat at the table. I think bringing my business experience to sports can be like one plus one equals five.”
The WNBA is growing stronger. Women’s sports are growing stronger. That strength was evident in the Olympics. Will it’s evident in the presidential campaign, when racial identity and issues are at the forefront?
Rawlinson, 45, is back in Illinois, where the Democratic National Convention is about to start in Chicago on Aug. 19, the day after the WNBA resumes play. She hopes the energy generated in Paris by so many women and black women will carry over into the election season.
It cannot tell players who to vote for, but the organization can create an atmosphere during which voting is desired.
“We’re making a huge effort to make sure our players and the office, everyone in the organization, knows about the voting opportunity, how they can register if they haven’t, and we encourage them to take time off to do so,” she said.
“So it’s very much a question of, ‘Do you even realize the power you have?'”
Yes, yes.
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Before she stepped off the podium on Sunday, Wilson asked a matter about women’s dominance at the Olympics and eloquently explained what the world had just seen.
The power of women.
“It’s nothing. We have women who have given birth. There’s someone who was, let’s say, six months pregnant and it’s devastating,” she said.
“So when it comes to showing up and showing up, I always go for women because we’re just phenomenal. The things that we go through, the weight that we carry, the mental aspect of how we approach things in life — there’s not a lot of people who can kill it like we can. So shout out to all the women out there who are going out there.”
In an election campaign during which gender will play a key role, it is a significant support.
The 2025 Basketball Africa League season will feature a brand new venue for the finals and playoffs and will also start at a brand new location.
The BAL 2025 Playoffs and Finals, scheduled for June 14, 2025, will happen at the recent home in Pretoria, South Africa. This will be the first time the BAL playoffs and finals haven’t been held in Kigali, Rwanda. The BAL 2025 season will also debut in a brand new location in Rabat, Morocco on April 5, 2025. During the BAL 2025 season, 12 of the best club teams from 12 African countries will play 48 matches in Rabat, Kigali and Dakar, Senegal, before traveling to Pretoria for play- offs.
“Over the first four seasons of BAL, we have seen tremendous growth in on-court competition, attendance and engagement from fans and partners in Africa and around the world,” BAL president Amadou Gallo Fall said in a press release. “Our groundbreaking fifth season will build on this momentum and continue to showcase the level of talent and passion for basketball in Africa, including through the first BAL games in Morocco and the first BAL Finals in South Africa.”
The 12 teams will be divided again into three conferences of 4 teams each. The group stage of the Kalahari Conference will happen from April 5 to 13, 2025 in Rabat. The group stage of the Sahara Conference will be held in Dakar from April 26 to May 4, 2025. The group stage of the Nile Conference will be held in Kigali from May 17 to 25, 2025. Eight teams from the three conferences will qualify for the play-offs in Pretoria, which will start on June 6 and end with the BAL 2025 finals.
“The Kalahari conference marks another expansion of BAL into a new country on our continent and we are more than satisfied,” FIBA Africa president Anibal Manave said in a press release. “The competition continues to grow each year, providing greater exposure for our sport and helping to raise the level of basketball in Africa, making the league increasingly competitive.”
National champions from Angola, Egypt, Morocco, Nigeria, Rwanda, Senegal and Tunisia routinely qualify for the BAL. The remaining five teams are from FIBA Africa’s Road to the BAL qualifying tournaments.
In the 2024 BAL season, Petro de Luanda of Angola became the first team from Sub-Saharan Africa to win the championship. According to BAL, the 2024 BAL season reached fans in 214 countries and territories in 17 languages, set an attendance record of greater than 120,000 fans in the 4 host countries and generated greater than 1.2 billion views across the NBA and BAL social media channels.
NFL Hall of Fame receiver and podcast host Terrell Owens has signed with a talent agency to further strengthen his claims within the entertainment game.
According to , Owens was signed by SMAC Entertainment, headed by host and NFL Hall of Famer Michael Strahan and his business partner Constance Schwartz-Morini.
NFL insider Jordan Schultz has also joined SMAC Entertainment.
“We are excited to add TO and Jordan to the SMAC family. They are both at the top of their game and set the standard in their industry,” Schwartz-Morini said in a written statement. “TO and Jordan have already brought an infectious energy to our team, and we are excited to help them realize their vision for careers in media, business and branding.”
A five-time first-team All-Pro and six-time Pro Bowler, Owens played for the San Francisco 49ers, Philadelphia Eagles, Dallas Cowboys, Buffalo Bills and Cincinnati Bengals. In 2018, he was finally inducted into the Pro Football Hall of Fame.
A member of the 2000 NFL All-Decade Team, Owens finished his profession with 1,078 catches for 15,934 yards, 14.8 yards per catch and 153 touchdowns, rating third all-time in receiving yards and touchdowns.
Since retiring from skilled soccer in 2012, Owens has already made several moves. He has appeared in several movies and tv shows, including “,” and in addition had his own reality show, “, on VH1.
He currently co-hosts the podcast with former NFL player and sports analyst Shannon Sharpe.
SMAC Entertainment is home to stars similar to rapper and actor Common, Wiz Khalifa, Strahan, Deion “Coach Prime” Sanders and current NFL players similar to Stefon Diggs and DK Metcalf.
Sports
Phoenix Suns guard Devin Booker brings an NBA championship desire with his Olympic experience
The gold medal went to the USA Basketball team. Mission completed on the 2024 Paris Games. U.S. men’s basketball coach Steve Kerr just answered his final query during his final news conference on Aug. 10 after his team defeated France within the gold medal game.
However, before leaving the stage of the press conference in Paris, Kerr stopped to deliver an unsolicited message to media around the globe.
“Devin Booker is an amazing basketball player. Nobody asked about him. He was our unsung MVP. I just desired to say that,” Kerr said.
The “underrated MVP” compliment meant so much to the Phoenix Suns guard.
“It meant everything. No one really asked him,” Booker recently told Andscape. “That was probably something that was weighing on his mind throughout the entire process. A 12 months ago I said what I desired to do for this team and what we desired to do for the country.
“It was a lot larger than all of us. Survival was something we’d discuss for the remainder of our lives.
The USA Basketball team was centered around NBA star icons LeBron James, Stephen Curry and Kevin Durant. There has also been some discussion amongst media and fans in regards to the lack of playing time for Jayson Tatum and, to a lesser extent, Tyrese Haliburton. Lost within the shuffle was the all-around, unselfish play of sharpshooter Booker wearing the armband.
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Booker was fourth in scoring for the U.S., averaging 11.7 points, 3.3 assists and a couple of.2 three-pointers made early in all six Olympics, and likewise had the perfect plus/minus (plus-130) for an American. Kerr was impressed with Booker’s deal with a difficult defense, regardless that he is thought for his offense, ball movement and the way he has adjusted to not being one in every of the highest options on offense.
“I just understood what was at stake,” Booker said. “I’m proud to be from this country. I’m happy with playing basketball. Even though it wasn’t invented in America, we dominated for a very long time. Obviously the world is incredibly talented and the sport is growing, however it was just one other message to allow them to know who we’re.
Booker said he also learned in regards to the preparations from his all-star team, watching the preparations on and off the court. The 28-year-old added that he gained lifelong friendships.
“It’s cool to see that everyone has their own issues,” Booker said. “In my 10 years in the NBA, I’ve learned that you have to choose what you can use for yourself. But the level of detail, the attention to detail, the intensity – it’s all consistent across the board.”
As for Durant, Booker said the bond between the 2 Sun stars “is close and grows stronger every day.” They live about five minutes from one another within the Phoenix area and commonly spend time at home and on the road. Most recently, Booker had to steer the Suns without Durant, who was sidelined with an injury.
The amazing Durant averaged 27.6 points, 6.6 rebounds and three.4 assists, which were tops for the Suns. However, the 14-time NBA All-Star has been sidelined since November 8 with a left calf strain. Suns players Bradley Beal (calf) and Jusuf Nurkic (ankle) were also sidelined. The Suns are 1-5 without Durant, which incorporates 4 straight losses.
Booker and Suns sans Durant’s next rivals shall be the New York Knicks on Wednesday evening (ESPN, 10 p.m. ET). Over the last six games, Booker is averaging 24.1 points, shooting 43.2% from the sphere and making 16 of 43 three-pointers. Suns guard Tyus Jones said there was numerous pressure on Booker offensively due to the injury.
“We’re asking a lot of Book,” Jones said after Monday’s 109-99 loss to the visiting Orlando Magic. “It’s numerous pressure for him. We are very focused on it. They are physical with him, holding him and grabbing him, throwing two or three bodies at him all night long. So he’s got so much on his plate and we just need to proceed to seek out ways to get him open within the moments we will and proceed to assist him when other players are taking shots and making plays.
Adam Pantozzi/NBAE via Getty Images
Booker currently has two Olympic gold medals, 4 NBA All-Star appearances and one NBA Finals appearance. The only thing missing from the Suns’ second-leading all-time scorer is an NBA championship. Since the Suns joined the NBA as an expansion team in 1968, they’ve yet to win a title.
After experiencing the joys of winning a gold medal, Booker as an NBA champion wants the gold Larry O’Brien NBA Championship Trophy much more.
“Most of the guys that were there did it,” Booker said of his Olympic teammates who were NBA champions. “They were champions. This is standard for them. Anything lower than that, they need nothing to do with it. It’s contagious…
“That’s all I want. That’s all I want.”
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