A detailed account of Rihanna's dating history with athletes
Rihanna is no stranger to scandalous behavior. She has always pushed the envelope since her rise to fame with topless magazine covers, wild fashion choices and accumulating a lengthy list of famous exes. While she's definitely hob-nobbed with plenty of celebrities, it seems like her real type is jocks. She’s been canoodling with professional athletes from all disciplines over the past couple of years. She either has a lot of athletic "friends" or, more likely, she enjoys the company of man in amazing physical condition with excellent hand-eye coordination, if you know what I mean.
We've done a lot of important research to catalog Rhi Rhi's full athletic dating history and preserve it for future generations.
Andrew Bynum
Former Los Angeles Lakers basketball player Andrew Bynum was spotted having dinner with Rhianna in April 2009. Sources told X17online the pair looked "very couple-y, sitting real close to each other in the car." But when the recently-single Rihanna was asked about the rumor, she said “that I was dating the Lakers Andrew Bynum. I couldn’t believe they insulted me like that.” Well dang girl, no need to throw shade.
Rashard Lewis
2009 was a big dating year for Rihanna and ballers. She was spotted leaving basketball player Rashard Lewis's apartment sans pants when paparazzi caught her walking out the front door of his building. Forget walk of shame, this was the stride of pride. Rihanna is known for her apathetic attitude toward public opinion. Can a girl live?
Matt Kemp
From 2009 to 2010, Rihanna formally dated Los Angeles Dodgers baseball star Matt Kemp. “I have a boyfriend. I’m so happy. I feel really comfortable, and it’s so easy. I have such a chaotic life, but at the end of the day, that is just my peace. It keeps me sane, really, talking to him and talking to my family,” she told ELLE magazine. As the year came to a close, so did their relationship, but the Kemp chapter wasn’t shut for good. She went back for seconds three years later (we’ve all been there). The Barbados babe was spotted with Kemp several times in 2013 sparking rumors of a reconciliation.
Dudley O'Shaughnessy
Rihanna found love in a hopeless place with former boxer-turned-model Dudley O'Shaughnessy who starred in her 2011 music video “We Found Love.” Sources say that traveling got in the way of their relationship and ultimately led to them going their separate ways, though they had another brief fling in 2013.
J.R. Smith
We know New York Knicks basketball player J.R. Smith hooked up with the “Diamonds” singer at some point in 2012. They were seen showing some serious PDA at nightclubs in New York and Miami, but somehow the relationship between the two went sour. When Smith struggled during Game 5 of the Eastern Conference semifinals last year, she claimed “his a-- be hung over from clubbing every night during playoffs” in an Instagram comment that went viral. Smith fired back with his own Instagram post mocking Rhi Rhi and Miami Heat fans.
Darren McFadden
In Touch reported Oakland Raiders RB Darren McFadden was spotted making out with the pop singer in Hawaii before the 2012 season. She told TMZ she was NOT dating McFadden but met him while he was vacationing with his girlfriend. Were they actually canoodling? The world may never know.
Mychal Kendricks
Rihanna Instagrammed and later deleted a picture of Eagles linebacker Mychal Kendricks under the hashtag MCM, which stands for “Man Crush Monday.” We don’t know if there was a love connection, but we wouldn’t hate it.
James Young
Former Kentucky and current Boston Celtics basketball player James Young was spotted sitting next to Rihanna while cheering on the Brooklyn Nets at the Barclays Center in May of this year. She later broke the news Young signed to Jay-Z’s Roc Nation. Maybe it was all business no play?
We think Lolo Jones said it best when it was announced Rhianna’s former boyfriend Drake was hosting the ESPYs earlier this year.
“It's amazing that Drake is hosting the @Espys but it's gonna be tough for him to hand out all those awards to Rihanna's ex boyfriends”
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