A Look At Basketball In America

Basketball: From the Beginning

Dr. James Naismith

Role of the YMCA and HBCUs

African American Basketball

YMCA

Howard University

BLACK BASKETBALL: COLLEGE/PROFESSIONAL (1) African American Colleges began playing basketball in 1909.

(2) Hampton Institute was the first African American College with its own basketball gymnasium.

(3) The Rens were the first African American team to win a professional world's championship (March 28,1939 in Chicago).

1927: Globetrotters (Chicago)

Globetrotters: Barnstorming

Basketball Cage

(4) The first African American player to gain prominence in a predominantly white college was Wilbur S. Woods (lettered at Nebraska in 1908,1909, and 1910).

(5) Charles (Chuck) Cooper of Duquesne University was the first African American signed by the NBA (1950). 1950-1951 season -66 games, 615 points, 9.3 average.

(6) Nat (Sweetwater) Clifton signed in the summer of 1950 (New York Knickerbockers).

Wilber Woods: 1909-1910

(7) Earl Lloyd ( 1950)(West Virginia State College) - First African American Assistant Coach and first African American Chief Scout in the NBA. (He was purchased from the Syracuse Nationals by the Detroit Pistons in the summer of 1958.) Earl retired at the end of the 1959-60 season.

(8) Prairie View (Texas) team was the first African American College to lead Associated Press and UPI polls (1961-1962). Prairie View won the NAIA Basketball Championship.

Earl Lloyd: “Big Cat” #44

 WVA. State  First Played NBA: Oct. 31,1950 (Washington Capitols)  Played 560 games, 9 seasons

Charles Cooper

 Grad of Westinghouse H.S. (Pittsburg, a.)  Attended WVA. State before going to Navy.

 After WWII, attended Duquesne University  Drafted by Boston Celtics

Wilt Chamberlain

 9 field goal titles  2 NBA titles  9 field goal % titles  Hall of Fame: 1978

(9)   1961-1962 - NBA - Wilt Chamberlain of Philadelphia Warriors became the first player to score 4000 or more points in a single season (4029).

1961-1962 - Scored 100 Points in a game.

Prior Record - 71 Points scored by Elgin Baylor (Lakers) (10) John McLendon - First Black Coach (Spring, 1960) to lead an American basketball team on an overseas tour. (Coach of Cleveland Pipers--National Industrial Basketball League--integrated league.)

(11) Pipers joined ABL - 1961-1962. McLendon became first African American to coach in major league professional basketball.

(12) Record (McLendon) Lawrence (Kansas) Memorial H.S.

North Carolina College Hampton Institute Tennessee State College Cleveland Pipers (1959-60) Cleveland Pipers (1960-61) U.S. Amateur Team in Russia (1961) Won Lost 10 274 32 140 18 24 9 2 61 14 18 17 10 0 (13) Don Barksdale - UCLA and Boston Celtics elected to Helms Hall Amateur Basketball Hall of Fame (1962) (Culver City, CA)

(14) (15) (16) (17) Bill Russell (Boston) Wilt Chamberlain (Philadelphia) First Two Black Superstars in the NBA First Black Elected to All NBA First Team: Elgin Baylor (Minneapolis Lakers) and Bill Russell (1958-1959) 1960-1961 - Black Members of All NBA First Team: Baylor, Chamberlain, Robertson (Note: Russell named to Second Team) 1953-William (Daily) King (played at Long Island University) became the first black member of the Collegiate Basketball Officials Association.

(18) March, 1955 - Missouri Arledge of Philander Smith College of Arkansas became first African American female basketball All American (5'10"). She was called "Big Mo." Made National AAU Team--21 points per game.

ABA Basketball

 1967: Same year, NBA added 13 new teams  11 teams: Pitt., Minneapolis, Indiana, Kentucky, Oakland, Anaheim, Houston, Denver, Dallas, New Orleans  Players: Connie Hawkins, Spencer Haywood, Dr. J, George Gervin, Maurice Lucas, David Thompson  ABA- NBA competition: salary explosions  1976 ABA All-Star game : slam- dunk (Dr. J)

NBA Coaches: 1970s

 Lenny Wilkens: 1969 palyer-caoch, Seattle  Earl Lloyd and Ray Scott: Detroit  John McLendon: Denver  Al Attles: Golden State  K.C. Jones: San Diego and Washington Bullets  Elgin Baylor: New Orleans

Basketball and The Olympic Games

BASKETBALL YMCA 1936 1948 (London) 1956 Games 1960 Games (Rome) 1964 1968 (Mexico) Gave Birth to Basketball Olympic Games - Basketball (Dirt Court) Don Barksdale (6'5" Tall - All American UCLA) Gold Medal USA Team Melbourne, Australia - Bill Russell and K.C. Jones (Undefeated Team) Oscar Robertson and Jerry West (Team Averaged 100 Points Per Game) (5 Black Players) Walt Hazzard -Leader Spencer Haywood (University of Detroit) Jo Jo White (University of Kansas) Black Player Boycott Bob Lanier, Elvin Hayes, Wes Unseld, Mike Warren, Lucius Allen, Lew Alcindor, Coach Hank IBA called "Bad Citizen."

1972 (Munich) 1976 1984 (LA Games) 1988 USA lost to Soviet Union team.

Refused to accept 51-50 loss and did not show up to receive Silver Medals.

Walter Davis and Phil Ford from UNC and Scott May and Quinn Buckner from Indiana University Soviet women win Gold - U.S.

women win Silver Michael Jordan, Sam Perkins, Patrick Ewing Black Women- Cheryl Miller, Lynette Woodard (1st Female Member of the Globetrotters), Pam McGree (Gold Medal) David Robinson, Hersey Hawkins, Stacey Augman. U.S. loss to Soviet Squad (82-76). U.S. failed to win basketball Gold Medal for the second time since 1936. U.S. women win Gold Medal (Defeated Yugoslavia 77 70) Teresa Edwards, Katrina McClain

College and Pro Basketball Today

Hoop Dreams!!!!!