The point is, Mr. Wilson, we keep hear- ing that the Big Ten conference has an ‘unwritten agreement’ not to use Negroes in basketball. If so, WHY? .... If the biggest, braggingest athletic conference in the middle of the greatest country of the world can use Negroes like…Duke Slater, George Taliaferro and the like… for football…why can’t it use them in basketball?” “Mr. Basketball’s” Integration of Bas- ketball In 1938, Branch McCracken became head basketball coach for Indiana Uni- versity and sought to recruit top rated high school players to create a com- petitive basketball squad in the Big Ten. During his early tenure as head coach at Indiana, McCracken consistently passed over several of the best Black high school players in the state, including Indiana’s 1946 ‘Mr. Basketball’ prodigy Johnny Wilson. Garrett wanted to at- tend and play basketball for a college close to home. He received a letter from UCLA, but Butler, nor any of the nearby Big Ten schools expressed any interest in him. Garrett was recruited to play for Tennessee Agricultural & Industrial State University (now known as Ten- nessee State University) and enrolled for the Fall term. Faburn DeFrantz, Executive Director of the Indianapolis Senate YMCA, spearheaded the effort to integrate Indiana University’s basketball team by adding Garrett to the team. Long existing segregation actions were still in place at Indiana University (IU) and increasing pressure for integra- tion caused IU President, Herman Wells to begin efforts of transformation away from IU’s historic discriminatory practices. DeFrantz met with Wells and reached an agreement to bring Garrett to IU and tear away the racial barriers. Once approached with the idea to trans- fer to IU, Garrett was conflicted and struggled with the prospect of being the first and only Black player on IU’s bas- ketball team. The outlook of integrating Big Ten basketball as Jackie Robinson had done for professional baseball, as well as being so close to home appealed to Garrett; he agreed to transfer to IU. Garrett was admitted to IU in the fall of 1947 and played on the freshman squad. McCracken paired Garrett with James
Roberson, an older two-sport Black student-athlete, to provide support and guidance to him. Roberson and Garrett were initiated into Kappa Alpha Psi in March of 1948. In December 1948, he debuted on the varsity team, becoming the first Black player on an IU varsity basketball team, ending the ‘gentleman’s agreement’ to restrict recruitment and play of Blacks on college’s Big Ten bas-
ranking. He led the Hoosiers in scoring and rebounding for three consecutive years, 1948-51. In 1951, Garrett gradu- ated from IU with a Bachelor of Science degree in Physical Education and was named All-American, amassing a school record total of 792 points. His pres- ence on IU’s basketball team impacted other Black’s acceptance as six other Blacks were admitted to IU’s basketball teams within a year of his graduation. At least seven Blacks were selected to play basketball for other Big Ten teams in the season immediately following his graduation. Post-graduation Career and Sustained Legacy Following graduation, Garrett coached basketball at harry E. Wood High School and Crispus Attucks High School in Indianapolis. Garrett was the only Black drafted to play for the Boston Celtics in 1951. Three months later, Garrett was drafted to serve in into the U.S. Army, which prevented him from playing one day in the NBA. Upon discharge in 1953, Garrett signed with and spent three years as a Harlem Globetrotter. Garrett was hired to the position of head basketball coach of Crispus Attucks High School and led the team to a state championship in 1959, after his second year of coaching. He was subsequently named Coach of the Year. Garrett continued to coach Attucks for eight more years, then assumed the position of Athletic Director. He was inducted into the Indiana Basketball Hall of Fame in 1974. A few months later, Garrett was Assistant Dean for Student Services at Indiana University-Purdue Univer- sity Indianapolis when he passed away from a heart attack. Shelbyville High School named the school gymnasium in his honor. He was inducted into the IU Hall of Fame in 1984. On April 8, 2017, Garrett’s legacy was honored by the Indiana Historical Bureau and IU with a historical state marker near the Ora L. Wildermuth Intramural Center (formally the IU fieldhouse), appropriately located where he played basketball.
ketball teams. Garrett made the varsity team during his sophomore year. He led the team in scoring and rebounding each year from 1949-51. During the 1950-51 season, he was selected as IU’s MVP, leading the team to a 19-3 record and #2
Opposite page: 1947 all stars. Garrett marker with family. Center column: Garrett with McCracken.
Publishing achievement for 105 years
THE JOURNAL | 67
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