Earl Lloyd

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Earl Lloyd

Lloyd, right, shakes hands with Walter E. Gaskin in January 2006
Position(s) Small forward
Jersey #(s) 11, 8, 17
Height 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m)
Weight 225 lb (102 kg)
Born April 3, 1928 (1928-04-03) (age 81)
Career information
Year(s) 1950–1960
NBA Draft 1950 / Round: 9th / Pick: 107th
Selected by Washington Capitols

College West Virginia State
Professional team(s)
Washington Capitols (1950–1951)
Syracuse Nationals (1952–1958)
Detroit Pistons (1958–1960)

Career stats
Points 4,682
Rebounds 3,609
Assists 810
Stats @ Basketball-Reference.com
Career highlights and awards
1× NBA Champion (1955)
CIAA "Player of the Decade" for the 1940s
NAIA Silver and Golden Anniversary Teams

Basketball Hall of Fame as player
Coaching
Detroit Pistons (1971–1972)

Earl Francis Lloyd (born April 3, 1928 in Alexandria, Virginia, USA) is a retired American basketball player. He was the first African-American to play in the National Basketball Association, in the 1950-51 NBA season.[1] Three other African Americans played in the same season: Chuck Cooper, Nathaniel Clifton, and Hank DeZonie.

Lloyd, a forward known for his defense, played collegiately at West Virginia State College, was selected in the ninth-round of the 1950 NBA Draft by the Washington Capitols. On October 31, 1950, Lloyd became the first African-American to play in an NBA game, against the Rochester Royals.

Lloyd led West Virginia State to two CIAA Conference and Tournament Championships in 1948 and 1949. He was named All-Conference three times (1948-50) and was All-American twice, as named by the Pittsburgh Courier (1949-50). As a senior, he averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds per game, while leading West Virginia State to a second place finish in the CIAA Conference and Tournament Championship. In 1947-48, West Virginia State was the only undefeated team in the United States.

Contents [hide]
1 NBA career
2 Personal
3 Honors
4 See also
5 Notes
6 External links and references


[edit] NBA career
Nicknamed "The Big Cat", Lloyd was one of three African-Americans to enter the NBA at the same time. It was only because of the order in which the teams' season openers fell that Lloyd was the first to actually play in a game in the NBA. The date was October 31, 1950, one day ahead of Cooper of the Boston Celtics and four days before Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton of the New York Knicks. Lloyd played in over 560 games in nine seasons, the 6-foot-5, 225-pound forward averaged 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds per game.

Lloyd played in only seven games for the Washington Capitols before the team folded on January 9, 1951. He then went into the U.S. Army at Fort Sill, Oklahoma, before the Syracuse Nationals picked him up on waivers. He spent six seasons with Syracuse and two with the Detroit Pistons before retiring in 1960.

Lloyd retired ranked 43rd in career scoring with 4,682 points. His best year was 1955, when he averaged 10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds for Syracuse, which beat the Fort Wayne Pistons 4-3 for the NBA title. Lloyd and Jim Tucker were the first African-Americans to play on an NBA championship team.

Lloyd once said; "In 1950, basketball was like a babe in the woods; it didn't enjoy the notoriety that baseball enjoyed." Like Lloyd, Clifton and Cooper had solid but not spectacular careers.

According to Detroit News sportswriter Jerry Green, in 1965 Detroit Pistons General Manager Don Wattrick wanted to hire Lloyd as the team's head coach. It would have made Lloyd the first African-American head coach in American pro sports. Dave DeBusschere was instead named Pistons player-coach. From 1972 to 1973, Lloyd did coach the Pistons and was a scout for five seasons.

[edit] Personal
Lloyd and his wife, Charlita, have three sons,[2] and four grandchildren. Earl currently resides in Fairfield Glade, Tennessee, just outside of Crossville, Tennessee [3].

[edit] Honors
In 2003, Lloyd was inducted to the Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor.[4]

Lloyd was named to the NAIA Silver and Golden Anniversary Teams.[4]

On December 1, 2007, the newly-constructed basketball court at T. C. Williams High School in Lloyd's home town of Alexandria, Virginia, was named in his honor. Lloyd actually attended Parker-Gray High School, as Alexandria's schools were racially-segregated at the time. T.C. Williams—the subject of the motion picture Remember the Titans—was created as a combined, desegregated school two decades later.[2]

[edit] See also
List of African American firsts
[edit] Notes
^ Ramsey, David (February 16, 2005). "Earl Lloyd: A Basketball Pioneer". NBA.com/Sixers. Turner Sports Interactive, Inc. http://www.nba.com/sixers/community/earl_lloyd_050208.html. Retrieved September 23, 2009.
^ a b http://www.alextimes.com/article.asp?article=7766
^ http://fairfieldgladetn.htu.myareaguide.com/white-pages.html?lmipath=/redir.php
^ a b http://www.hoophall.com/halloffamers/bhof-earl-lloyd.html
[edit] External links and references
Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Earl Lloyd
Basketball Hall of Fame bio
BasketballReference.com: Earl Lloyd (as coach)
BasketballReference.com: Earl Lloyd (as player)
Earl Lloyd's oral history video excerpts at The National Visionary Leadership Project
Preceded by
Terry Dischinger (interim) Detroit Pistons head coach
1971–1972 Succeeded by
Ray Scott
[show]v • d • eSyracuse Nationals 1954–55 NBA Champions

3 King | 4 Schayes | 5 Seymour | 6 Simmons | 7 Gabor | 8 Osterkorn | 10 Kerr | 11 Lloyd | 12 Farley | 14 Tucker | 15 Kenville | 16 Rocha | Coach Cervi


[show]v • d • eDetroit Pistons

Formerly the Fort Wayne Zollner Pistons and the Fort Wayne Pistons • Founded in 1941 • Based in Auburn Hills, Michigan

Franchise Detroit Pistons • All-time roster • Seasons • Draft history • Head coaches • Current season


Arenas North Side High School Gym • Allen County War Memorial Coliseum • Olympia Stadium • Cobo Arena • Pontiac Silverdome • The Palace of Auburn Hills


Head coaches Carl Bennett • Curly Armstrong • Murray Mendenhall • Paul Birch • Charley Eckman • Red Rocha • Dick McGuire • Charles Wolf • Dave DeBusschere • Donnie Butcher • Paul Seymour • Butch van Breda Kolff • Terry Dischinger • Earl Lloyd • Ray Scott • Herb Brown • Bob Kauffman • Dick Vitale • Richie Adubato • Scotty Robertson • Chuck Daly • Ron Rothstein • Don Chaney • Doug Collins • Alvin Gentry • George Irvine • Rick Carlisle • Larry Brown • Flip Saunders • Michael Curry • John Kuester


D-League affiliate Fort Wayne Mad Ants

Retired numbers William Davidson • 2 • 4 • 11 • 15 • 16 • 21 • 40


Important figures Fred Zollner • George Yardley • Dave Bing • Bob Lanier • William Davidson • Jack McCloskey • Chuck Daly • Isiah Thomas • Bill Laimbeer • Vinnie Johnson • Joe Dumars • Mark Aguirre • Rick Mahorn • John Salley • Dennis Rodman • Grant Hill • Chauncey Billups • Rip Hamilton • Tayshaun Prince • Rasheed Wallace • Ben Wallace • Larry Brown • George Blaha


NBA Championships (3) 1989 • 1990 • 2004


Culture and lore "DEE-troit BASKETBALL!" • Jordan Rules • Hooper • Pacers–Pistons brawl


Rivals Chicago Bulls • Boston Celtics • Los Angeles Lakers


Media TV: Fox Sports Detroit • Radio: WXYT (AM), WXYT-FM, WWJ • Announcers: George Blaha • Greg Kelser • Mark Champion • Rick Mahorn


[show]v • d • eBasketball Hall of Fame Class of 2003

Players Dino Meneghin • Robert Parish • James Worthy

Coach Leon Barmore

Contributors Chick Hearn • Meadowlark Lemon • Earl Lloyd

[show]v • d • eNaismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame

Based in Springfield, Massachusetts

Members [show] Coaches (82)

Allen • Anderson • Auerbach • Auriemma • Barmore • Barry • Blood • Boeheim • Brown • Calhoun • Cann • Carlson • Carnesecca • Carnevale • Carril • Case • Chancellor • Chaney • Conradt • Crum • Daly • Dean • Díaz-Miguel • Diddle • Drake • Ferrándiz • Gaines • Gamba • Gardner • Gill • Gomelsky • Gunter • Hannum • Harshman • Haskins • Hickey • Hobson • Holzman • Iba • Jackson • Julian • Keaney • Keogan • Knight • Krzyzewski • Kundla • Lambert • Litwack • Loeffler • Lonborg • McCutchan • A. McGuire • F. McGuire • Meanwell • Meyer • Miller • Moore • Nikolić • Novosel • Olson • Ramsay • Riley • Rubini • Rupp • Rush • Sachs • Sharman • Shelton • Sloan • Smith • Stringer • Summitt • Taylor • Thompson • Wade • Watts • Wilkens • Williams • Wooden • Woolpert • Wootten • Yow

Boldface indicates those who are also inducted as players



[show] Contributors (56)

Abbott • Bee • Biasone • H. Brown • W. Brown • Bunn • Colangelo • Davidson • Douglas • Duer • Embry • Fagan • Fisher • Fleisher • Gavitt • Gottlieb • Gulick • Harrison • Hearn • Hepp • Hickox • Hinkle • Irish • Jones • Kennedy • Lemon • Liston • Lloyd • McLendon • Mokray • Morgan • Morgenweck • Naismith • Newell • Newton • J. O'Brien • L. O'Brien • Olsen • Podoloff • Porter • Reid • Ripley • Saperstein • Schabinger • St. John • Stagg • Stanković • Steitz • Taylor • Teague • Tower • Trester • Vitale • Wells • Wilke • Zollner


[show] Players (139)

Guards Archibald • Beckman • Belov • Bing • Blazejowski • Borgmann • Brennan • Cervi • Cousy • Davies • Drexler • Dumars • Frazier • Friedman • Gervin • Goodrich • Greer • Hanson • Haynes • Holman • Hyatt • Jeannette • Johnson • K. Jones • S. Jones • Jordan • Lieberman • Maravich • Marcari • Martin • McDermott • McGuire • Meyers • Monroe • Murphy • Page • Petrović • Robertson • Roosma • Russell • Schommer • Sedran • Sharman • Steinmetz • Stockton • Thomas • Thompson • Vandivier • Wanzer • West • Wilkens • Woodard • Wooden

Forwards Arizin • Barkley • Barry • Baylor • Bird • Bradley • Cunningham • Curry • Dalipagić • Dantley • DeBusschere • Dehnert • Endacott • English • Erving • Foster • Fulks • Gale • Gates • Gola • Hagan • Havlicek • Hawkins • Hayes • Heinsohn • Howell • Lucas • Luisetti • McAdoo • B. McCracken • J. McCracken • McHale • Mikkelsen • Miller • Pettit • Phillip • Pollard • Ramsey • Schayes • Schmidt • Thompson • Twyman • White • Wilkins • Worthy • Yardley

Centers Abdul-Jabbar • Barlow • Bellamy • Chamberlain • Cooper • Ćosić • Cowens • Crawford • DeBernardi • Donovan • Ewing • Gallatin • Gruenig • Harris-Stewart • Houbregs • Issel • Johnson • Johntson • Krause • Kurland • Lanier • Lovellette • Lapchick • Macauley • Malone • Meneghin • Mikan • Murphy • Olajuwon • Parish • Reed • Risen • Robinson • Russell • Semjonova • Thurmond • Unseld • Wachter • Walton

Boldface indicates those who are also inducted as coaches



[show] Referees (13)

Enright • Hepbron • Hoyt • Kennedy • Leith • Mihalik • Nucatola • Quigley • Rudolph • Shirley • Strom • Tobey • Walsh


[show] Teams (6)

Buffalo Germans • The First Team • Harlem Globetrotters • New York Rens • Original Celtics • 1966 Texas Western



Awards Bob Cousy Award • Curt Gowdy Media Award • John Bunn Award • Frances Pomeroy Naismith Award

Website: http://www.hoophall.com/


Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Earl_Lloyd"
Categories: 1928 births