The Ivy League is an American collegiate athletic conference of eight private research universities in the Northeastern United States. It participates in the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA) Division I, and in football, in the Football Championship Subdivision (FCS). The term Ivy League is used more broadly to refer to the eight schools that belong to the league, which are globally renowned as elite colleges associated with academic excellence, highly selective admissions, and social elitism. The term was used as early as 1933, and it became official in 1954 following the formation of the Ivy League athletic conference.
College basketball is basketball that is played by teams of amateur student-athletes at universities and colleges. In the United States, colleges and universities are governed by collegiate athletic bodies, including the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), the National Association of Intercollegiate Athletics (NAIA), the United States Collegiate Athletic Association (USCAA), the National Junior College Athletic Association (NJCAA), and the National Christian College Athletic Association (NCCAA). Each of these various organizations is subdivided into one to three divisions, based on the number and level of scholarships that may be provided to the athletes. Teams with more talent tend to win over teams with less talent.
Kwame Hasani Brown is an American former professional basketball player who spent 12 seasons in the National Basketball Association (NBA). Selected first overall by the Washington Wizards in the 2001 NBA draft, Brown was the first player to be drafted number one overall straight out of high school. He later played for the Los Angeles Lakers, Memphis Grizzlies, Detroit Pistons, Charlotte Bobcats, Golden State Warriors, and Philadelphia 76ers. His performance as a first overall draft pick has led many analysts to label him as one of the biggest busts in NBA history.
Charles Henry Cooper was an American professional basketball player.
Arthur George Gaston was an American entrepreneur who established businesses in Birmingham, Alabama. He had a significant role in the movement to remove legal barriers to integration in Birmingham in 1963. In his lifetime, Gaston's companies were some of the most prominent African-American businesses in the American South.
Alfred "Butch" Beard Jr. is an American former professional basketball player and coach. He was the starting point guard with the 1975 NBA champion Golden State Warriors.
Black Enterprise is an American multimedia company. A Black-owned business since the 1970s, its flagship product Black Enterprise magazine has covered African American businesses with a readership of 3.7 million. The company was founded in 1970 by Earl G. Graves Sr. It publishes in print and digital, an annual listing of the largest African-American companies in the country, or "B.E. 100s", first compiled and published in 1973. In 2002 the magazine launched a supplement targeting teens, Teenpreneur. Black Enterprise also has two nationally syndicated television shows, Our World with Black Enterprise and Women of Power.
Earl Gilbert Graves Sr. was an American entrepreneur, publisher, businessman, philanthropist, and advocate of African-American businesses. A graduate of Morgan State University, he was the founder of Black Enterprise magazine and chairman of the media company Earl G. Graves, Ltd. He was the director for Aetna and Executive Board member of the Boy Scouts of America. He was the father of Earl G. Graves Jr.
The Yale Bulldogs men's basketball team represents Yale University in New Haven, Connecticut, competing in the Ivy League. The team plays home games in the John J. Lee Amphitheater of the Payne Whitney Gymnasium. The team has reached the NCAA Division I men's basketball tournament seven times, in 1949, 1957, 1962, 2016, 2019, 2022, and 2024. The current head coach is James Jones.
Wesley Saunders is an American professional basketball player for the Ostioneros de Guaymas of the Circuito de Baloncesto de la Costa del Pacífico (CIBACOPA). He played college basketball for the Harvard Crimson.
Joseph Chung-Hsin Tsai (Chinese: 蔡崇信; Pe̍h-ōe-jī: Chhòa Chông-sìn; born January 1964) is a Taiwanese-Canadian billionaire business magnate, lawyer, and philanthropist. He is a cofounder and chairman of the Chinese multinational technology company Alibaba Group and owns the Brooklyn Nets of the American National Basketball Association (NBA), the New York Liberty of the Women’s National Basketball Association (WNBA), the San Diego Seals of the National Lacrosse League (NLL), and has interests in several other professional sports franchises. Tsai's net worth is estimated to be US$8.1 billion.
Sterling Damarco Brown is an American professional basketball player for Partizan Belgrade of the Basketball League of Serbia (KLS), the Adriatic League and the EuroLeague. He played college basketball for Southern Methodist University (SMU) from 2013 to 2017. As a senior, he earned second-team all-conference honors in the American Athletic Conference (AAC). Brown was drafted 46th overall in the 2017 NBA draft by the Philadelphia 76ers.
Seth Emmanuel Towns is an American basketball assistant coach for Harvard and former college basketball player. He played college basketball for the Harvard Crimson, the Ohio State Buckeyes, and the Howard Bison. He entered the 2023–24 NCAA Division I men's basketball season as an extremely rare eighth-year senior, but having only played in three seasons. Between injuries, a voluntary year away from the sport, and an NCAA blanket waiver granted to players active during the COVID-19 pandemic, Towns entered 2023–24 with up to two years of collegiate eligibility remaining. He previously played for the Harvard Crimson where he was the 2018 Ivy League Player of the Year as a sophomore, and then the Ohio State Buckeyes which saw him compete in just the 2020–21 season.
Kinsley Edosomwan is an American professional basketball player for Gifu Swoops of the B.League. He earned second-team all-conference honors in the Ivy League in 2016. He is the founder and CEO of the Unfiltered Network, which profiles college students of various backgrounds.
Bryan Kevin Porter Jr., also known by his initials KPJ, is an American professional basketball player for the Los Angeles Clippers of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the USC Trojans.
Olumiye Dimolu "Miye" Oni is an American-Nigerian professional basketball player for Joventut Badalona of the Liga ACB and the EuroCup. He played college basketball for the Yale Bulldogs. He plays the shooting guard position. Oni was named Ivy League Player of the Year in 2019 and was a three-time All-Ivy League selection.
Jeremiah Christian Robinson-Earl is an American professional basketball player for the New Orleans Pelicans of the National Basketball Association (NBA). He played college basketball for the Villanova Wildcats.
Paul Atkinson Jr. is an American professional basketball player who last played for Kortrijk Spurs of the BNXT League. He played college basketball player for the Notre Dame Fighting Irish and the Yale Bulldogs.
Michael Smith is an American professional basketball player for Rostock Seawolves of the Basketball Bundesliga. He played college basketball for the Columbia Lions and the Michigan Wolverines. He was the 2019–20 Ivy League scoring champion and holds the Big Ten men's basketball tournament single-game assists record (15). He has also led both the Ivy League (2017–18) and the Big Ten (2020–21) in assists per game.
The 2021 NBA draft, the 75th edition of the National Basketball Association's annual draft, was held on July 29, 2021, at Barclays Center in Brooklyn, New York. The NBA draft returned to Brooklyn after the previous year's draft was held through videoconferencing at ESPN Studios in Bristol, Connecticut due to the COVID-19 pandemic. With the first overall pick, the Detroit Pistons selected Cade Cunningham. The NBA used a "ceremonial pick" for the late Terrence Clarke, between the 14th and 15th pick of the draft.
