The "They Cleared the Lane Symposium held on January 19, 2002 was a cornerstone
of the Martin Luther King, Jr. Holiday in Memphis. It further served as a key
event for the National Basketball Association and the Memphis Grizzlies.
Symposium Speakers:
SHANE BATTIER,
GRIZZLIES FORWARD
Shane Battier, now 23 years of age, is already an accomplished individual. Battier
graduated from Duke University in May 2001 with a degree
in Comparative Religion, and with an NCAA
championship. He swept the national player of
the year awards, was named the academic
player of the year, was selected in the first
round of the NBA draft, won a gold medal at the
Goodwill Games as a member of USA
Basketball and led the 2001 NBA rookie class
in many statistical categories earning him a
spot on the NBA All-Rookie First Team.
A native of Birmingham, Michigan, Battier has
a strong commitment to supporting numerous
national and local community programs. He
was recently selected to serve on the Memphis
Zoological Society Board of Directors, the First
Tennessee National Corporation Advisory Board,
and the Electronic Arts Sports Advisory Board.
Additionally, Battier participates in the
Grizzlies “Tickets for Kids” program by donating
31 (his uniform number) tickets for every home
game to kids who participate in Junior
Achievement and Big Brothers/Big Sisters.
AL ATTLES,
LEGENDARY NBA GUARD
Attles has witnessed it all during his lengthy
NBA career with the Warriors as a player, coach
and executive – the exciting wins, the disappointing
losses and the magical 1974-75
championship season. He was around to see
Wilt Chamberlain's intimidating presence,
Nate Thurmond's defensive prowess, Rick
Barry's offensive explosions and the excitement
of "Run-TMC." Furthermore, he is one of
only five players in club history to have his jersey
retired (#16) and remains one of the most
recognizable sports figures in the Bay Area.
Legendary Warriors guard Al Attles was
involved in one of the most memorable games
in NBA history, 40 years ago on March 2, 1962,
when he and teammate Wilt Chamberlain combined
for 117 points against the New York
Knicks, the most ever by a pair of players in
league annals. In that game, Attles tallied 17
points (8-8 FG, 1-1 FT), while Chamberlain
netted an all-time NBA record 100 points.
During his 11-year NBA career, Attles averaged
8.9 points, 3.5 rebounds and 3.5 assists in 711
regular-season games and currently ranks
fifth on the Warriors all-time games played list
(711).
Attles has spent the last 14 years – since 1987
– as assistant general manager with the
Warriors, assisting the front office in a variety
of ways, ranging from player personnel input to
numerous speaking engagements.
RON THOMAS, AUTHOR,
THEY CLEARED THE LANE
Today, African American players comprise more
than eighty percent of the NBA's rosters, providing
a strong and valued contribution to professional
basketball. In the first half of the
twentieth century however, pro basketball was
tainted by racism as gifted African Americans
were denied the opportunity to display their
talents. A few managed to eke out a living
playing for the New York Renaissance and
Harlem Globetrotters, black professional teams
that barnstormed widely, playing local teams
or in short-lived leagues. Also, a sprinkling of
black players were on integrated teams.
Modern professional basketball began to take
shape in the late 1940s, during which time the
NBA was formed. Fearful of economic repercussions,
team owners originally imposed an
unwritten ban on black players. But pressured
by several progressive owners and the increasing
emergence of talented black players, the
NBA gradually accepted integration. A few pioneers,
such as Sweetwater Clifton, Chuck
Cooper, Earl Lloyd, and Don Barksdale, managed
to break through and confronted discrimination
and numerous frustrations. Yet they
persevered, often with support from white
teammates and coaches.
Through in-depth interviews with players, their
families, coaches, teammates, and league
officials, Ron Thomas tells the largely untold
story of what basketball was really like for the
first black NBA players, including early superstars
such as Maurice Stokes and Bill Russell,
and the league's first black coaches. They
Cleared the Lane is both informative and
entertaining, full of anecdotes and little-known
history. Not all of the stories have happy endings,
but this unfortunate truth only emphasizes
how much we have gained from the
accomplishments of these pioneer athletes.
Ron Thomas is a sportswriter for the San
Francisco Examiner and covered the NBA for
nine years.
WAYNE EMBRY,
FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN TEAM PRESIDENT
Wayne Embry played 11 professional seasons
with the Cincinnati Royals, Boston Celtics and
Milwaukee Bucks.
He earned an NBA championship with the
Celtics in 1968 and was named to five NBA All-
Star teams. While Embry enjoyed a solid playing
career, his overall impact on basketball
uniquely covers both on and off-court activities.
In 1971, Embry was named General
Manager of the Bucks, becoming the first
African American to hold that position in the
NBA. From 1985 to 1992, he served as vice
president and general manager of the
Cleveland Cavaliers, and in 1994, he became
the NBA's first African American team president
with the Cavaliers. In Cleveland's first 16
years, the Cavaliers averaged 31 wins and four
playoff appearances. Over the last 12 years
under Embry, the Cavs have averaged 45 wins
and had nine playoff appearances. For his
efforts, The Sporting News named him NBA
Executive of the Year in 1992 and 1998. A
native of Springfield, OH, Embry was an honorable
mention All-State performer at Tecumseh
High School and became a two-time honorable
mention All-America selection at Miami
University (1954-58). Miami's high scorer,
team captain and MVP in 1957 and 1958,
Embry is one of only four players in school history
to have his jersey (#23) retired.
BOB LANIER, LEGENDARY NBA CENTER
During his 14-year NBA career with the Detroit
Pistons and Milwaukee Bucks, Bob Lanier was
the model of consistency. His sweeping lefthand
hook and dominating inside play made
him one of the most feared big men of his era.
Opposing centers had to keep a watchful eye
on Lanier because he had an equally imposing
outside game. He proved this as an eight-time
All-Star and MVP of the 1974 game. Lanier's
career numbers – 19,248 points (20.1 ppg)
and 9,698 rebounds (10.1 rpg) – still rank
among the top 20 in NBA records.
He was the number one choice of the Detroit
Pistons in the 1970 draft and was later named
to the NBA's All-Rookie team. Lanier graduated
from St. Bonaventure, near his native Buffalo,
NY. He holds St. Bonaventure records for scoring
(27.6 ppg) and rebounding (15.7 rpg) and
was a three-time All-American. His high
school, collegiate and professional (Milwaukee)
jerseys have all been retired. In 1978, he was
selected by the basketball press as recipient of
the J. Walter Kennedy Citizenship Award. In
1981, the YMCA presented Lanier with the
Jackie Robinson Award for service to youth,
good citizenship and leadership. In fact,
Lanier's diplomacy both on and off the court
led him to the presidency of the NBA Players
Association. Lanier became an assistant coach
with the Golden State Warriors prior to the
1994-95 season, and assumed head coaching
duties during the season, compiling a 12-25
record in that brief coaching stint.
Lanier serves as Special Assistant to NBA
Commissioner David Stern.
EARL LLOYD, FIRST AFRICAN AMERICAN NBA PLAYER
Earl Lloyd, who in 1950 became the first
African American to play in an NBA game with
the Washington Capitols, was instrumental in
integrating professional basketball as a player
and coach. A native of Alexandria, Virginia,
Lloyd led West Virginia State to two CIAA
Conference and Tournament Championships in
1948 and 1949. He was named All-Conference
three times (1948-50) and All-America twice
by the Pittsburgh Courier (1949-50). As a senior,
he averaged 14 points and 8 rebounds per
game while leading West Virginia State to a
second place finish in the CIAA Conference and
Tournament Championship. In 1947-48, West
Virginia State was the only undefeated team in
the United States.
As a player, Lloyd enjoyed a solid NBA career
with the Washington Capitols, Syracuse
Nationals and Detroit Pistons. During Syracuse’s
championship season in 1955, Lloyd averaged
10.2 points and 7.7 rebounds per game,
becoming the first African American to win an
NBA title. In 1968, Lloyd became the first
African American Assistant Coach with the
Detroit Pistons. In 1971, he became the second
African American head coach and first African
American bench coach again with Detroit. He
coached future Hall of Famers Dave Bing and
Bob Lanier. Later, as a scout, he discovered
and recommended such talents as Willis Reed,
Earl Monroe, Ray Scott and Wally Jones.
Lloyd was named the CIAA “Player of the
Decade, 1947-56.” He was also named to the
All-Time CIAA All-Tournament Team, the CIAA
Silver Anniversary Team and the NAIA Golden
Anniversary Team. He was voted one of the
CIAA’s 50 Greatest Players and elected to the
CIAA Hall of Fame (1998).
BILL RUSSELL, LEGENDARY NBA CENTER/FIRST AFRICAN-AMERICAN HEAD COACH
Bill Russell's legacy: Defense wins championships.
Before Bill Russell brought his
marvelous defensive and shot blocking skills
to basketball, the game focused primarily on
offense. But Russell initiated a defensive
mentality that remains a focal part of championship
basketball at every level. Without a
doubt, Russell was the greatest defensive
center in the history of basketball. Russell
cultivated his skills at the University of San
Francisco, under Hall of Fame Coach Phil
Woolpert. The agile Russell was a dominant
collegian, and teamed with fellow Hall of
Famer K.C. Jones to lead the Dons to 55
consecutive victories, and capped his collegiate
years with the 1955 and 1956 NCAA
championships. In 1955 and 1956, Russell
earned All-America honors and was named
national Player of the Year in 1956. Russell
delayed his professional career so he could
play in the 1956 Olympic Games in Melbourne,
Australia. Along with Jones, Russell led the
U.S. to an 8-0 record and the gold medal.
Russell played in 48 of the Boston Celtics' 72
games as a rookie, and his presence in the
Celtics' lineup began a dynasty in Boston
rivaled in sports only by John Wooden's UCLA
Bruins and baseball's New York Yankees.
Russell turned Boston into a powerful machine
that overwhelmed opponents both defensively
and offensively. During Russell's career,
Boston won 11 NBA championships, including
eight consecutive from 1959 to 1966. Russell's
head-to-head battles with Wilt Chamberlain in
the 1950s and 1960s are legendary. In their
first highly anticipated showdown on Nov. 7,
1959, Russell grabbed an amazing 35
rebounds and Boston won 115-106. Russell's
accolades include: five-time league MVP
(1958,1961-63, 1965), 12-time All-Star Game
participant (MVP in 1963), Sports Illustrated
Sportsman of the Year in 1968 and The
Sporting News Athlete of the Decade in 1970.
This defensive wizard, who once had 51
rebounds in a game against Syracuse in 1960,
led the NBA in rebounding five times and
grabbed 21,620 rebounds (second all-time),
averaged 15.1 ppg and 22.5 rpg for his career.
At the beginning of the 1967 season, the
Celtics named Russell to succeed Red
Auerbach as head coach, making him the first
ever African American NBA head coach.
Russell served as player/coach from 1967 to
1969, and led Boston to the 1968 and 1969
NBA titles. Russell was named to the All-NBA
25th and 35th Anniversary Teams in 1970 and
1980 and the 50th Team in 1996.
Robert L. Johnson, First African American Majority Owner of a Professional Sports Francise
Robert L. Johnson is the founder and chief executive officer of Black Entertainment Television (BET), a subsidiary of Viacom Inc and the leading African American operated media and entertainment company in the United States. Recently, Johnson's bid to become the majority owner of a new NBA expansion franchise in Charlotte, North Carolina was unaminously approved by the NBA Board of Governors. This approval makes Johnson the first African American majority sports owner in the history of professional sports.
This event was sponored by: The Hyde Family Foundation, Memphis Light, Gas and Water, the City of Memphis, and the National Civil Rights Museum.
