William ‘Dolly’ King

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L.I.U. went on to win the 1941 National Invitation Tournament (N.I.T.), which was the collegiate championship prior to the existence of the N.C.A.A. Tournament.

King surely would have finished at L.I.U. and been drafted by the N.B.L. were it not for the whites-only policy employed there and in other racially segregated leagues.

By the time the N.B.A. was formed in 1949, King was past his prime.

Today he is enshrined today in the L.I.U. Sports Hall of Fame.

King also played professional basketball with the Harlem Yankees, Grumman Wildcats, and Washington Bears.

While with the Bears, he led the team to win the championship title in the 1943 World Pro Basketball Tournament.

He signed with the Rochester Royals of the National Basketball League (N.B.L.) in 1946, becoming the first African American to join the league during its post-World War II period. The N.B.L. was a predecessor to the National Basketball Association.

King also played professional football with the Long Island Indians and pro baseball with the Homestead Grays.

Later, he was a member of the all-black Dayton Rens team that joined the N.B.L. in 1948.

After his playing career, King became a prominent basketball referee, baseball umpire, recreational director, and community leader in Harlem.

He died of a heart attack in 1969.

Please see these Black Fives Blog articles for more on William “Dolly” King.

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