NEW YORK — Oct. 2, 2025 – The National Basketball Association (NBA) and the National Basketball Players Association (NBPA) today announced that they will celebrate the 75th anniversary of the NBA Pioneers – Chuck Cooper, Nathaniel “Sweetwater” Clifton and Earl Lloyd, the league’s first Black players – throughout the 2025-26 season.

As part of the celebration, the Milwaukee Bucks and Boston Celtics will tip off Black History Month and celebrate NBA Pioneers Day with the inaugural NBA Pioneers Classic on Saturday, Feb. 1 at 3:30 p.m. ET on ESPN. Going forward, the NBA Pioneers Classic will be played between two NBA teams on Feb. 1 – NBA Pioneers Day – each year to recognize the start of Black History Month and honor the legacy of the NBA Pioneers. As part of the matchup, the Bucks and Ce

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