Date in History January 7 Harlem Globetrotters formed

One outstanding basketball team in America that is not included in the NBA is the Harlem Globetrotters. This basketball team performs more than just jump shots, 3 pointers, and a double dribble may turn into an hysterical moment. These athletes bring in more than just sportsmanship as they combine theater and comedy into playing basketball. However those that have seen these remarkable players do not just reside within the United States. 



 
Each year the team will play an average of 450 games a year around the world. All together the team has played in 124 countries and territories. Home for the team is Atlanta Georgia here in the United States where the owners the Herschend Family Entertainment and executives are located on Peachtree Corners. However the Globetrotters started out in south side Chicago.

The year was 1926 and original 5 members of the Globetrotters began the adventure at the Savoy in Chicago Illinois. The dancing would decline but this all African American team would begin to play more basketball. The team would first tour southern Illinois The following year the team gained a manager / promoter by the name of Abe Saperstein. The following year Saperstein would take his "New York Harlem Globetrotters" on an even larger tour. However the team name at that time did not reflect the entire truth as they did not play in Harlem til 1968.

In 1940 the Globetrotters participated in the World Professional Basketball Tournament and won. An upset in 1948 would see the Globetrotters beating the Lakers. The Minneapolis Lakers (later the team would move to Los Angeles) was one of the best white basketball teams in the country. During the early years the team and managers controlled the talent pool of African American basketball players. Thus making the Harlem Globetrotters was one of the most famous teams in the country.  

The line of African Americans desiring to play would start to diminish when the NBA was created. Then during the 1950s the NBA would also start offering African Americans a chance to play on the team of their choice. As the talent pool started to decline the Harlem Globetrotters knew that they had to do something that the other teams were not offering. So the team began to work in comic routines into the various plays of the game. 

The team was directed by a player known by the name of Reece "Goose" Tatum. Goose would lead his team-mates thru talent shows of coordination and skillful handling of one or more basketballs, juggling balls, talented passes between players, spinning balls on their fingertips, and difficult trick shots. However it takes two teams to play a game, who was going to play a team that took their turn to show off the moves of the game. 

In 1952 a new team the Washington Generals was created. The team would be the Globetrotters primary opponent. In other words the team was created to play the stooge team that faced the Globetrotters. Perhaps if you have ever seen  a game you know that the winner is pre-determined to be the Harlem Globetrotters. 

A famous American player by the name of Wilt Chamberlain would travel with the team to Moscow Russia in 1959. The tea would receive the athletic order of Lenin medal. The first games though were a bit confusing as basketball fans were confused until they realized that the Harlem Globetrotters were more about show than competition. However the fans would warm up and the relationship between America and Russia would improve as well

Some members of the Harlem Globetrotters went on to play in the NBA as well. Members such as "Wee" Willie Gardner, Connie "The Hawk" Hawkins, Wilt "The Stilt" Chamberlain and Nat "Sweetwater" Clifton would go on to earn names in the NBA as well. There were also 13 female players that were part of the teams through out the year. Through the years the team has faced criticism as well.

Today, the team plays a good game against their opponent. The outcomes are not longer fixed. Their opponents do understand that the Globetrotters will have many plays that have nothing to do with basketball through out the game. In fact they were beat in 1971 by the Generals. 

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