How Many NBA Players Are Black?

In the NBA, African-American players make up the vast majority of the league. In fact, as of 2019, 78% of NBA players are black. This is a significant increase from 1967, when only 44% of players were black.

Introduction

Since the National Basketball Association (NBA) was founded in 1949, African Americans have been playing a significant role in the league. In fact, many historians argue that the NBA would not be the successful global brand it is today without the contributions of black players.

According to a report by The Institute for Diversity and Ethics in Sport (TIDES) at the University of Central Florida, 82% of NBA players are black. This number has remained relatively unchanged over the past few years, despite the fact that blacks make up only 13% of the U.S. population.

The same TIDES report found thatAfrican Americans make up 35% of NBA coaching staffs and 30% of front office positions.

The NBA’s Racial History

The National Basketball Association has a long and complicated racial history. The league was founded in 1946 and consisted of only white players. It wasn’t until 1950 that the NBA began to see its first black player. Chuck Cooper was drafted by the Boston Celtics in the second round of the 1950 NBA draft. In the following years, the NBA slowly began to see an increase in the number of black players. However, it wasn’t until the late 1960s that the NBA began to see a significant number of black players.

Pre-1950

The National Basketball Association (NBA) is a men’s professional basketball league in North America, composed of 30 teams (29 in the United States and 1 in Canada). It is widely considered to be the premier men’s professional basketball league in the world.

The NBA’s racial history can be traced back to its origins in the Northeast United States. The league began with 8 teams in 1946, all of them located in large cities with significant African American populations. In its early years, the NBA was composed exclusively of white players. This began to change in 1950, when Harold Hunter became the first black player to sign an NBA contract. By 1955, there were 12 black players in the league (10% of the total). In 1966, Chuck Cooper became the first black player drafted into the NBA.

The number of black players in the NBA continued to increase steadily over the next few decades. In 1975, there were approximately 50 black players in the league (17% of the total). This number increased to approximately 150 black players by 1985 (30% of the total). The percentage of black players peaked at about 80% in 2001. The current percentage of black players is about 74%.

1950-1969

Between 1950 and 1969, only six black players were drafted into the NBA. In 1950, Chuck Cooper became the first black player to be drafted by an NBA team. He was followed by Nat “Sweetwater” Clifton in 1951. Earl Lloyd was the first black player to actually step onto an NBA court when he made his debut with the Washington Capitols in 1950. Hank DeZonie was drafted by the Boston Celtics in 1952 but never played a game for them.

Willie Naulls became the first black player to be drafted in the first round when he was selected by the St. Louis Hawks in 1956. Through 1969, no more than 10 black players were on NBA rosters at any one time.

1970-present

Between 1970 and present day, the NBA has undergone a drastic makeover in terms of the racial demographic of their league. In 1970, the year that the NBA instituted a rule that required four black players on each team, the league was composed of 80% black players. However, by 1980 that number had decreased to 45%, and it has hovered around 75% ever since. Today, according to a 2017 poll released by Nielsen, 74% of respondents said they believed that “the NBA is doing a good job promoting racial equality and diversity.”

The NBA Today

The NBA is composed of the world’s best basketball players. Many of these athletes are African American. In fact, black players make up a large percentage of the league. But how many black players are there in the NBA today?

The league’s demographics

The NBA is made up of 73% black players, 23% white players, and 1% Latino players according to a 2019 study. In terms of nationality, 54% of players were born in the United States while 46% were born outside the U.S. (including Canada and Puerto Rico).

The league has been getting gradually more diverse over the years. In 1980, 86% of NBA players were black and 14% were white. In 2000, 76% of players were black, 22% were white, and 1% Latino. And in 2019, 73% of NBA players were black, 23% were white, and 1% Latino.

There are presently eight African American head coaches in the NBA: Lloyd Pierce (Atlanta Hawks), Doc Rivers (Los Angeles Clippers), Dwane Casey (Detroit Pistons), Tyronn Lue (Los Angeles Clippers assistant coach), David Fizdale (New York Knicks), Monty Williams (Phoenix Suns), John Beilein (Cleveland Cavaliers), and Quin Snyder (Utah Jazz).

The league’s diversity

The NBA today is a much more diverse league than it was even just a few years ago. In terms of racial diversity, the league is now almost evenly split between black and white players, with a small percentage of Latino and Asian players as well. This is a significant change from the league’s early years, when it was predominantly white.

As of 2019, the percentages of black, white, Latino, and Asian players in the NBA are as follows:

-Black: 74.4%
-White: 14.8%
-Latino: 8.6%
-Asian: 2.2%

Conclusion

In conclusion, we found that the percentage of black NBA players has increased steadily over the past few decades, and currently stands at around 75%. This is significantly higher than the percentage of black Americans in the general population, which is around 13%. There are a number of possible explanations for this discrepancy, including the fact that basketball is a relatively affordable sport to get into, and that many inner-city kids grow up idolizing NBA stars. Whatever the reasons, it’s clear that black Americans are heavily represented in the NBA, and this is unlikely to change anytime soon.