by Claude Johnson February 19, 1937, was a big night in Oshkosh, Wisconsin. That’s because the local basketball team, the all-white Oshkosh All Stars, was on the eve of playing in a “World Series of Basketball” that would put the small city and the state of Wisconsin on the national professional basketball map. Their opponent:… Read more »
Early Racial Inclusion Puts Wisconsin On Pro Basketball Map
In 1943 the Washington Bears, an all-black basketball team, went 41-0 while winning the World Professional Basketball Tournament, the nation’s highest basketball title.
Top of the list among all possible pre-NBA players for enshrinement in the Basketball Hall of Fame, is Black Fives Era superstar Clarence ‘Fats’ Jenkins.
Our list of the most deserving Black Fives Era players and contributors who are not yet enshrined in the Basketball Hall of Fame.
Bill Rhoden’s latest column will likely make you disappointed in David Stern and his N.B.A., or the Rev. Calvin Butts III and his Abyssinian Development Corporation (ADC).
The “Rens” attracted the best African American talent in basketball. The team’s original lineup included future Basketball Hall of Famers Clarence “Fats” Jenkins and James “Pappy” Ricks, as well as Frank “Strangler” Forbes and Leon Monde. All four of these men also played professional baseball in the Negro Leagues.