When the 2026–27 NBA regular season tips off Oct. 20, basketball fans will witness another chapter in a league whose history was forever changed by a player who stepped onto an NBA court 76 years ago.
On Oct. 31, 1950, Earl Lloyd became the first African American player to appear in an NBA game. Lloyd made history with the Washington Capitols against the Rochester Royals, breaking a racial barrier in professional basketball.
Nicknamed “The Big Cat,” Lloyd went on to play 560 games over nine NBA seasons. His historic debut was only the beginning of a career filled with significant milestones.
In 1955, Lloyd and teammate Jim Tucker became the first African American players to win an NBA championship. The two were members of the Syracuse Nationals, who defeated the Fort Wayne Pistons in the NBA Finals.
Lloyd also broke barriers from the sideline.
After his playing career ended, he became the NBA’s first Black assistant coach when he joined the Detroit Pistons’ coaching staff in 1968. He later became Detroit’s head coach during the 1971–72 season.
His contributions to basketball were recognized in 2003 when Lloyd was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor.
Lloyd died in 2015 at age 86, but his place in NBA history remains firmly established. Every generation of players who follows has entered a league made more accessible by the barriers he helped break.
Now, as the NBA prepares to begin its 80th regular season, the league will open its 2026–27 campaign with a nationally significant triple-header on Tuesday, Oct. 20.
The opening-night schedule includes the Boston Celtics at the Detroit Pistons at 3 p.m. ET, followed by the Philadelphia 76ers at the New York Knicks at 7 p.m. ET. The defending champion Knicks will raise their championship banner before the game, while LeBron James is scheduled to make his Sixers debut.
The night’s action concludes with the Oklahoma City Thunder visiting the San Antonio Spurs at 9:30 p.m. ET.
From Lloyd’s historic appearance in 1950 to today’s stars preparing for another NBA season, the league’s opening night provides an opportunity to look back at the players whose courage and accomplishments helped shape professional basketball.
Earl Lloyd was there at the beginning of that transformation–and his historic first step onto an NBA court remains part of the league’s story.