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Personal information | |
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Born | Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | September 29, 1926
Died | February 5, 1984 Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania, U.S. | (aged 57)
Listed height | 6 ft 5 in (1.96 m) |
Listed weight | 208 lb (94 kg) |
Career information | |
High school | Westinghouse (Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania) |
College |
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NBA draft | 1950: 2nd round, 13th overall pick |
Selected by the Boston Celtics | |
Playing career | 1950–1956 |
Position | Small forward / shooting guard |
Number | 11, 15, 6 |
Career history | |
1950–1954 | Boston Celtics |
1954–1956 | Milwaukee / St. Louis Hawks |
1956 | Fort Wayne Pistons |
Career highlights and awards | |
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Career statistics | |
Points | 2,725 (6.7 ppg) |
Rebounds | 2,431 (5.9 rpg) |
Assists | 734 (1.8 apg) |
Stats at NBA.com | |
Stats at Basketball-Reference.com | |
Basketball Hall of Fame as player |
Charles Henry Cooper (September 29, 1926 – February 5, 1984) was an American professional basketball player.
Cooper played college basketball for Duquesne University and was named an All-American. He was the first African-American to play in a college basketball game south of the Mason-Dixon line. In 1950, Cooper and two others--Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton and Earl Lloyd--became the first African-American players in the National Basketball Association (NBA).[1] Cooper was also the first African-American to be drafted by an NBA team; he was chosen by the Boston Celtics with the first pick of the second round of the 1950 NBA Draft.[1] In a six-season NBA career, Cooper played for the Celtics, the Milwaukee/St. Louis Hawks, and the Fort Wayne Pistons, averaging 6.7 points and 5.9 rebounds per game.
Cooper was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame on September 9, 2019.[2]