March 6, 1972: Wayne Embry Becomes the 1st Black GM In American Sports

March 6, 1972: The Milwaukee Bucks hire Wayne Embry as their general manager. This makes him the 1st black GM in major league American sports.

Wayne Richard Embry was born on March 26, 1937 in Springfield, Ohio. He grew up in nearby New Carlisle, and attended Tecumseh High School there. It stands on U.S. Route 40, and that section of the highway has been named Wayne Embry Boulevard. He starred at Miami University of Ohio, which retired his Number 23, and now has a statue honoring him outside their arena, Millett Hall. His wife Terri is also a Miami graduate. They have 2 daughters and a son.

He played for the nearby Cincinnati Royals from 1958 to 1966; with the Boston Celtics until 1968, winning a title that year; and was an original member of the Milwaukee Bucks in the 1968-69 season. Known for a good hook shot, he made 5 NBA All-Star Games.

He retired in 1969, and was immediately hired for the Bucks' front office. With the veteran Oscar Robertson (a teammate of Embry's in Cincinnati) and the young Kareem Abdul-Jabbar, the Bucks won the NBA Championship in 1971, sweeping the Baltimore Bullets in the Finals.

When Ray Patterson, the team's 1st GM, resigned, the Bucks' board of directors unanimously voted to promote Embry to the GM's role. With his front-office work, the Bucks got back to the NBA Finals in 1974, but lost to the Boston Celtics.

He remained with the Bucks until 1979, a year in which the Bucks began a run of 7 straight NBA Division titles. In 1986, he was hired as GM of the Cleveland Cavaliers, a hard-luck team that kept smacking into first the Detroit Pistons' "Motor City Bad Boys," then the Michael Jordan-era Chicago Bulls. They reached the Eastern Conference Finals in 1992, but that would be as close as they came.

He was named NBA Executive of the Year in 1992 and 1998. In 2004, he was hired as senior basketball advisor to the Toronto Raptors, a post he has held ever since. He helped to build the team's 2019 NBA Champions.

He was elected to the Basketball Hall of Fame in its "Contributors" category in 1999.

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March 6, 1972 was a Monday. This was a big day in basketball for another reason, although no one would know it for 20 years: Shaquille O'Neal was born.

Baseball was in Spring Training. Football was out of season. There were no games in the NHL, or in the American Basketball Association.

Only 1 game was played in the NBA: The Bucks beat the Boston Celtics, 132-127 in overtime at the Milwaukee Arena. In 1974, it was renamed the Milwaukee Exposition, Convention Center and Arena, or "The MECCA." Since 2014, it has been named the UW-Panther Arena. Kareem scored 45 points, overcoming 34 from John Havlicek.