Ex-Piston, first black NBA player Earl Lloyd dies at 86
Earl Lloyd, the first black player in NBA history, died Thursday. He was 86.
Lloyd's alma mater, West Virginia State, confirmed the death. It did not provide details.
Lloyd made his NBA debut in 1950 for the Washington Capitols, days before fellow black players Sweetwater Clifton and Chuck Cooper played their first games.
"When Earl stepped out on the court on that fateful date in 1950, this remarkable man rightfully earned his place in the historic civil rights movement and, more important, he opened the door to equality in America," West Virginia State president Brian Hemphill said in a released statement.
The 6-foot-5 forward averaged 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds in 560 regular-season games in nine seasons with Washington, Syracuse and the Detroit Pistons. He missed the 1951-52 season while serving in the U.S. Army.
Lloyd played for the Pistons in 1958-60, averaging 8.6 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.3 assists. He also was 22-55 as Detroit's coach in 1971-72 and the first nine games of the 1972-73 season.
http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2015/02/27/389521868/5-quotes-from-earl-lloyd-the-first-black-player-in-the-nba
http://www.freep.com/story/sports/nba/pistons/2015/02/27/earl-lloyd-nba-black-pioneer/24109145/
