Earl Lloyd made history on Oct. 31, 1950 when he broke the NBA’s color barrier, becoming the first African-American to play in an NBA game. Born in Alexandria, Va., Lloyd graduated from Parker-Gray HS in 1946, making his way to Institute to play at then-West Virginia State College.
While at WVSU, Lloyd led the Yellow Jackets to two CIAA Conference and Tournament championships, and was named All-American twice. In 1948, he helped the team to a 30-0 record, making the Yellow Jackets the only undefeated team in college basketball that season, winning the Colored Intercollegiate Athletic Association Tournament in Washington D.C. Lloyd and the Yellow Jackets returned the next year to successfully defend their national title. In his four years playing for the Yellow Jackets, WVSU went 86-11.
He was also named to the CIAA Silver Anniversary team and was voted as one of the CIAA’s 50 greatest players. In 2001, the the Congressional Black Caucus Policy and Leadership Institute bestowed the inaugural “Legends of Black History” Sports Award on Lloyd, and in 2008 the U.S. House of Representatives honored Lloyd with a Congressional Resolution. In 2007, the newly constructed basketball court at T.C. Williams High School in Lloyd’s home town of Alexandria, Va., was named in his honor.
In a 2010 interview with National Public Radio, Lloyd told the story of why the team traveled in eight passenger vans instead of buses, telling the host “They were like eight-passenger DeSotos, touring cars. We're on a bus, we get on a bus in West Virginia and we travel down, and the minute we got into North Carolina, the bus driver, you know, would say, well, you boys got to sit in the back. Now, I'm not going to get killed, right? My coach, who was a really strong guy - you had to appreciate him - I mean, he took this guy to task. So, we're in the state traveling, we're sitting where we want, and when the coach turned around, his team was almost sitting on the bumper.”
He was drafted into the NBA in 1950 (9th round), signing with the Washington Capitols. His NBA debut occurred on October 31, 1950, inside Edgerton Park Arena in Rochester, N.Y., when the Capitols played the Rochester Royals. Although the Capitols lost, Lloyd scored six points on the historic night. Also making their NBA debuts during the first week of the season were Sweetwater Clifton, who made his debut Nov. 4 after becoming the first African-American to sign an NBA contract, as well as Chuck Cooper, who was drafted in the second round of the 1950 draft by the Boston Celtics. Lloyd went on to play nine seasons, including six with Syracuse, becoming one of the first two African-Americans to win an NBA championship in 1955. His rookie campaign lasted just seven games, because on Nov. 7, 1950, Lloyd was drafted into the US Army, where he served in the Korean War for two years.
After serving his country, he returned to the NBA in 1952, going on to win an NBA title in 1955 as a member of the Syracuse Nationals (now the Philadelphia 76ers). He averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game that year. He retired from the NBA in 1960, having played in 560 games over nine seasons, averaging 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.
After his retirement, Lloyd became an assistant coach for the Detroit Pistons, drafting and helping develop Bailey Howell, Earl Monroe and Willis Reed. In 1968, he became the first African-American assistant coach in the NBA, before being named the first full-time African-American bench head coach in league history. He also the first African-American executive for Chrysler and as a job-placement administrator with Detroit Public Schools. In 2003, he was rightfully honored with induction into the Naismith National Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor. Lloyd passed away in Feb. 2015 at his home in Crossville, Tenn.
In 2018, a street on the West Virginia State campus was renamed as Earl Lloyd Way. In 2014, the Yellow Jackets began hosting the annual Earl Lloyd Classic, played on the first weekend of the collegiate season. The number he wore at WVSU is retired, and proudly hangs inside the Walker Convocation Center. A statue of Lloyd is featured in the lobby of the Walker Convocation Center and has been on display there since the center opened during the spring of 2014. The statue was created by artist Brian Hanlon, who is the official sculptor for the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame.
Lloyd is a member of the below halls of fame
Lloyd’s story is the subject of the documentary film “The First To Do It.”
