On April 25, 1950, the Boston Celtics make Chuck Cooper, an
All-American forward from Duquesne University, the first
African American picked in NBA draft. With the selection,
the first pick in the second round, Cooper breaks the NBA’s
color barrier and changes the league for the better.
Cooper continued his pace-setting off the court upon his
retirement. He earned a Master’s Degree in Social Work
from the University of Minnesota in 1960. In 1970, he
became the City of Pittsburgh’s first Black department
head and later served as Pittsburgh National Bank’s first
Urban Affairs Officer.
The Boston Celtics posthumously awarded him with a
‘Heroes Among Us’ award in 2016.
Charles Henry Cooper (September 29, 1926 – February 5, 1984)
