BCS History & Legends

BLACK COLLEGE SPORTS

ABA/NBA BLACK COLLEGE BASKETBALL DRAFTEES

1948 – 1968

  Home  »     1948-68    1968-71    1972-79     1980-2009

Don Barksdale,  the very first Black player to be named All-America at UCLA (1947-50), joined the first players from a black college to sign an NBA contract in 1950. Barksdale, 6-6, was also the first African American to appear in an NBA All-Star Game in 1953 and the first black player on the ’48 Olympic Gold medal team.  However, he was the third African-American after Chuck Cooper joined Boston and Earl Lloyd signed with the Washington Capitols, becoming the first from a black college. He was followed by Bob Wilson and Nate ‘Sweetwater’ Clifton in the same draft in 1950. Since then, there have been more than 321 drafted and signed as free agents from the Black college ranks.
Here is the list…have fun with it…let us know if you can add to it.
Edd Hayes  

1948-64
Player/SchoolHt.Pos.Draft
Rnd
Draft
No.
Team
1948Henry DeZonie
Clark University
(Fourth black player to sign a pro contract
6-6F/CDayton Rens (NBL)
1950Earl Lloyd
West VA State
1st Black College Player to play in the NBA
6-5 F 9101Washington Capitols
Nat ‘Sweetwater’ Clifton
Xavier, LA
1st Black Player to sign with the Knicks
6-8FNew York Knicks
1951Bob Wilson
West VA State
One of first signees in the NBA
6-4 GMilwaukee Hawks
1954 Ken McBride
Maryland-Eastern Shore
6-3F/GMilwaukee Hawks
1955Robert L. Williams
Florida A&M
6-7FMinneapolis Lakers
1956Bob Hopkins
Grambling State
6-8F/CSyracuse Nationals
1957Sam Jones
North Carolina College
8-time NBA Champs 1959-69
6-4G/F18Boston Celtics
Bob McCoy
Grambling State
6-10C2-2 10 Detroit Pistons
Joel Ingram
Jackson State
6-0GMinneapolis Lakers
Max Jamerson
Kentucky State
7-0C553Philadelphia Warriors
Woody Sauldsberry Jr.
Texas Southern
6-7F/C 553Philadelphia Warriors
1958Bennie Swain
Texas Southern
6-8F 1-77 Boston Celtics
1st Black player to sign with the Celtics
Jim Dew
12-380 Detroit Pistons
Joe Buckhalter
Tennessee State
First TSU Tiger to sign a Pro contract
6-7C 12-481Louis Hawks
1959Dick Barnett
Tennessee State NAIA Champs 1957, 58, 59
6-4G1-4 4Syracuse Nationals
1960Al Attles
North Carolina A&T
6-0G5-7 Philadelphia Warriors
GSW 1975 NBA Champs;
San Francisco Warriors/Head Coach
Howard Mills
Grambling State
11-3 76 New York Knicks
1961Cleo Hill
Winston-Salem State
6-1G1-88St. Louis Hawks
George Finley
Tennessee State
7-0 C 4-335 Detroit Pistons
Rossie Johnson
Tennessee State
5-2 43Cincinnati Royals
Bruce Spraggins
Virginia Union
6-5 F5-647 Philadelphia Warriors
Cleveland Buckner
Jackson State
6-9F/C6-151 New York Knicks
Rex Tippitt
Grambling State
9-581 Syracuse Nationals
Herbert Gray
North Carolina A&T
9-682 St. Louis Hawks
Charles Riley
Winston-Salem State
7-766 St. Louis Hawks
Walter Ward
Hampton Institute
8-3 71Detroit Pistons
1962Zelmo Beatty
Prairie View A&M
6-9C1-3 3St. Louis Hawks
Ben Warley
Tennessee State
6-5F/G 1-66Syracuse Nationals
Porter Meriwether
Tennessee State
6-2 G3-5 21Syracuse Nationals
Charles Hardnett
Grambling State
6-8F/C3-3 19St. Louis Hawks
Jackie Jackson
Virginia Union
6-10F/C 5-741 Philadelphia Warriors
Marvin Trotman
Elizabeth City State
6-6F9-372 St. Louis Hawks
1963Hershell West
Grambling State
2-815 Syracuse Nationals
Waite Bellamy
Florida A&M
6-3F4-632 St. Louis Hawks
Al Santio
Maryland State
6-6 50St. Louis Hawks
Hugh Evans
North Carolina A&T
6-1 G 12-2 79St. Louis Hawks
1964Willis Reed
Grambling State
1964 NAIA Champions
6-10C2-1 8New York Knicks
1969, 71 NBA Champs…2-time MVP
Bobby Joe Edmonds
Tennessee State
6’6 F6-3 3 Baltimore Bullets
Ernest Brock
Virginia State
7-0C6-649 St. Louis Hawks
Maurice McHartley
North Carolina A&T
6-3G/F 7-6 58 St. Louis Hawks
Wally Briggs
North Carolina A&T
10-380Philadelphia 76ers
Frank Stephens
6-10C10-481 St. Louis Hawks
Indiana Pipers (ABA)
Richard Glover
Winston-Salem State
11-286 Baltimore Bullets

Julius Myers
Morris Brown
12-2 91Philadelphia 76ers
1965Hal Blevins
Arkansas A&M
2-3 10New York Knicks
Bob Love
Southern
6-8F4-7 29Cincinnati Royals
Malbert Pradd
Dillard
6-3G58 Chicago Bulls
Warren Davis
North Carolina A&T
6-6F7-2 51 New York Knicks
Ted Manning
North Carolina College
6-8C/F 7-2 61Detroit Pistons
Lawrence LeFlore
Jackson State
7-44 53Baltimore Bullets
Willie Cotton
Central State, Ohio
9-1 66 San Francisco Warriors
Thales McReynolds
Miles
6-3G11Baltimore Bullets
Oliver Jones
Albany State
6-11C13-5 94Cincinnati Royals
1966Ron Jackson
Clark-Atlanta
5-1 41 New York Knicks
John Comeaux
Grambling State
6-5F7-9 68 Chicago Bulls
Guy Manning
Prairie View A&M
6-6F10-387 Baltimore Bullets
Houston Mavericks (ABA)
1967Earl Monroe
Winston-Salem State
1967 NCAA Div. Player of the Year 1967 NCAA Div. II Champions
6-4G1-21Washington Bullets
1972 NBA Champs, NY Knicks
James Jones
Grambling State
6-4G/F 2-113Baltimore Bullets
New Orleans Bucs (ABA)
Thomas Washington
Cheyney State
6-7F5-7 50 Cincinnati Royals
James Reid
Winston-Salem State
1967 NCAA Div. II Champs
6-6G5-10 53Philadelphia 76ers
New Orleans Buccaneers (ABA)
Frank Card
South Carolina State
6-7F7-10 77Philadelphia 76ers
Ed Manning
Jackson State
6-7F8-180Baltimore Bullets
Cincinnatus Powell
, Portland, Xavier, LA
6-7F/C8-566 St . Louis Hawks
Arvesta Kelly
Lincoln, MO
6-2G8-685St Louis Hawks
Robert Allen
Arkansas A&M
9-19-1+2Baltimore Bullets
Dallas Chaparrals (ABA)
Walt Simon
Benedict
6-6F/G12New Jersey Nets (ABA)
Bill Bradley
Tennessee State/Evansville
5-11G Kentucky Colonels (ABA)
Tyrone Britt
NC Central /JC Smith
6-4FSan Diego Conquistadors(ABA)
David Gaines
LeMoyne-Owen
6-1GKentucky Colonels (ABA)
Tommy Lee Bowens
Grambling State
6-8FDenver Rockets (ABA)
Johnny Mathis
6-6FNew Jersey Nets (ABA)
Willie Porter
Tennessee State
6-7FOakland-Pitt Pipers (ABA)
John Postley
Bethune-Cookman
6-5FPittsburgh Pipers (ABA)
Willis Bennett
Winston-Salem State
6-3GDallas-Houston Rockets(ABA)
Willis Thomas
Tennessee State
6-2GDenver-Anaheim (ABA)
Al Jackson
Wilberforce
6-1GCincinnati Royals
Al Beard
Norfolk State
6-9CNew Jersey Americans(ABA)
1968Ken Wilburn
Central State, Ohio
6-6F4-939Philadelphia 76ers
Rich Johnson
Grambling State
6-7C4-1046Boston Celtics
Ed Chapin
Voorhees
6-4C5-454Baltimore Bulletts
Carl Fuller
Bethune-Cookman
6-9C5-656Floridians (ABA)
Calvin Martin
Texas Southern
6-569Cincinnati Royals
Oscar Smith
Elizabeth City State
6-8C7-1169Atlanta Hawks
Aaron Sellers
Jackson State
8-193San Diego Rockets
Melvin Jones
Albany State
6-10C8-12104Philadelphia 76ers
Mack Daughtry
Albany State
6-3G9-11117Atlanta Hawks
Carolina Cougars (ABA)
Sylvester Adams
North Carolina A&T
10-8 128 New York Knicks
Henry Watkins
Tennessee State
11-10144Atlanta Hawks
Dwight Waller
Tennessee State
6-6F10-11131Atlanta Hawks
Lee Davis
North Carolina A&T
10-13133Phoenix Suns
Roy Manning
Lane
12-1148San Diego Rockets
Ted Campbell
North Carolina A&T
G12-11158Philadelphia 76ers

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