In 1950, Chuck Cooper became the first African American basketball player ever selected in the NBA Draft. However, he was not the only African American to enter the NBA at the time.
Once drafted, Cooper changed the history of the NBA forever because the color line had been officially broken. However, this did not come with backlash.
Cooper was selected by the Boston Celtics, but the decision was heavily criticized by other NBA team owners. But they eventually got over it, and the NBA now primarily drafts African Americans players - sometimes right out of high school.
Cooper played four seasons with the Celtics until he was traded to the Milwaukee Hawks in 1954. Finally, in 1956, he finished off his career playing for the Fort Wayne Pistons.
Throughout his career, he played 409 games and averaged 6.7 points, 5.9 rebounds and 1.8 assists.
He was also inducted into the Naismith Basketball Hall of Fame, a museum in Springfield Massachusetts, that is home to more than 300 inductees and more than 40,000 square feet of basketball history.
