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Washington, D.C., March 5th – Congressman Jim Moran’s resolution (H. Con. Res. 286) honoring hometown hero Earl Lloyd, the first African American to play in the National Basketball Association was approved by the U.S. House of Representatives today. The resolution was passed by an unanimous 412-0 vote.
“At a time in our nation’s history when racial attitudes were at their most vile, Earl stood tall, braving hostilities that no one should have to endure,” said Moran. “Earl and many others like him in the civil rights movement knocked down the doors of oppression so that future generations might be set free from prejudice. For Alexandrians, he is a hometown hero, someone who represents the values of inclusion, justice, and hard work -- the bedrock of our community.”
Earl “Big Cat” Lloyd was the first African-American to break the NBA’s color barrier. A first round draft pick by the Washington Capitols in 1950, Mr. Lloyd played his first game in the NBA on October 31, 1950. Over the course of nine seasons -- interrupted by a two year stint in the Army -- he played in 560 games, averaging a solid 8.4 points and 6.4 rebounds, helping carry his team to an NBA Championship in 1955. Mr. Lloyd later became the NBA’s first African-American assistant coach and went on to serve as head coach for the Detroit Pistons. Earl Lloyd was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003.
Mr. Lloyd, born and raised in Alexandria, Virginia, developed his passion for the game of basketball as a star at the segregated Parker-Gray High School. Twice named an All-American at West Virginia State College, Lloyd led his collegiate alma mater to two conference and tournament championships -- including the school’s only undefeated season in 1947-48.
As a hometown hero, role model and athletic star, the Alexandria City Council recently named T.C. Williams High School’s (where students at Parker-Gray were sent after integration) new basketball court in Earl Lloyd’s honor.
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