The Black Fives: A history of the era that led to the NBA's racial integration The NBA's colour barrier was broken in 1950, but the ground work for that monumental moment was laid close to 50 years earlier. https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/NBA_Global_CMS_image_storage/39/f1/carlangay_bo8r1z6j8j6m1k9liwbz0hnzh.jpg?t=1377768377&w=500 By Carlan Gay @TheCarlanGay url copied to clipboard Nat Clifton (left), Chuck Cooper (center), Earl Lloyd (right) help break NBA's colour barrier in 1950. (Getty Images) https://images.daznservices.com/di/library/NBA_Global_CMS_image_storage/b0/4e/nba1950_67xe8idz4joy1ufxruzoke7zw.jpeg?t=99968375&w=500