[Congressional Record Volume 154, Number 53 (Friday, April 4, 2008)]
[Extensions of Remarks]
[Pages E520-E521]
From the Congressional Record Online through the Government Publishing Office [www.gpo.gov]




EXPRESSING THE SENSE OF CONGRESS IN RECOGNIZING AND HONORING EARL LLOYD

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                         HON. CHARLES B. RANGEL

                              of new york

                    in the house of representatives

                         Friday, April 4, 2008

  Mr. RANGEL. Madam Speaker, I rise today to express my full support of 
the resolution recognizing and honoring Earl Lloyd for breaking the 
color barrier and becoming the first African-American to play in the 
National Basketball Association fifty eight years ago.
  Earl Lloyd was born in Alexandria, Virginia on April 3, 1928. With a 
height of 6 ft 5 in and 225 lbs. Lloyd first developed his passion for 
basketball in the city of Alexandria's segregated Parker-Gray High 
School, where he started on the school team. He went on to play 
basketball at West Virginia College and then was drafted to play for 
the NBA in 1950.

[[Page E521]]

On October 31, 1950, he became the first African-American to play in a 
NBA game, against the Rochester Royals. Lloyd played five hundred and 
sixty NBA games and won a championship before retiring in 1960. In the 
midst of his career he proudly put his professional career on hold and 
served in the Army for two years before returning to the game. In 2003 
he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame and 
in his home town, Alexandria, a basketball court at T.C. Williams was 
named in his honor.
  Earl Lloyd played for the love of the sport of basketball and not to 
make history, but his entry into the NBA meant a lot during 
segregation.
  I am proud to honor Earl Lloyd for his career achievements as the 
first. He opened the doors for several famous basketball players, such 
as Michael Jordan, Scotty Pippin, Charles Barkley, etc. He truly blazed 
new trails for African-American athletes who today grace the 
professional game in significant numbers, constituting the great 
majority of the best players in the NBA.

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