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Davage Minor makes hall of fame with groundbreaking basketball achievements
Davage Minor, left, talking with UCLA teammate Don Barksdale, center, and Bruins head coach Wilbur Johns, right. (Photo: UCLA Athletics)

Davage Minor makes hall of fame with groundbreaking basketball achievements

NEW CASTLE, Ind. (BVM) Davage Minor had a basketball career that was different than most. However, it was a very special one, and because of it Minor has earned an induction into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 2020.

Minor began his basketball success in Gary, Ind., where he played high school ball at Froebel High School. As a senior in 1941, the Blue Devil was named a team captain, and would end up leading his team to state for the first time in school history. His efforts senior year also led to all-state honors.

At the beginning of his high school career, Minor was actually recognized as the first player in Northwest Indiana to develop a jump shot. A groundbreaking accomplishment for the game of basketball in the area, the ‘Wheelhorse of Steel City’ would utilize that shot in his high school and eventual college career.

Minor began his first college stint at the University of Toledo, where he averaged 16 points per game. In 1943, he was named to the All-American second team by Sporting News. Minor’s college career would come to a halt after that however, as he ended up joining the U.S. Army, serving in World War II.

After returning from the war, the future hall of famer returned to the game of basketball once again, and showed no rust from his time off. Now playing college basketball at UCLA after transferring, Minor continued his standout play and earned additional recognition by being named PCC all-conference first team both seasons he played for the Bruins in 1947 and 1948.

After college, Minor stayed out in California to play for an AAU team, the Oakland Bittners. In his first season with the squad in 1949, he helped lead the team to an AAU National Championship. Minor also participated in the Pan-American Games and even became a member of the Harlem Globetrotters during his professional career.

In 1951, Minor would make history when he joined the NBA, playing for the Baltimore Bullets. The pro broke barriers when entering the league, becoming the first African-American from Indiana to play in the NBA, the first African-American to play for an NBA team south of the Mason-Dixon line, and one of the first five African-American players to ever play in the association. 

During his brief two-year stint in the league, Minor began with Baltimore but was later traded to the Milwaukee Hawks in the 1952-53 season. According to Basketball Reference, Minor scored 877 points and totaled 527 rebounds across his 116 game career with the two teams.

In his post-basketball career, Minor became a business owner. He would eventually move down to Orlando, Fla. to enjoy his retirement.

Minor passed away in 1998, at the age of 76. An accomplished high school and college basketball player, a veteran, and a pioneer for African-Americans in the NBA, Minor has left us with a groundbreaking legacy that has finally led to an Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame induction.