Ted Strong Jr.

Ted Strong Jr. (1914-1978) was a two-sport athlete, a major star of the Negro Leagues and one of the original Harlem Globetrotters. His prominence in the Negro Leagues led Branch Rickey to consider Strong as one of several possible players to integrate major league baseball, and he was a key force on the basketball court when the Globetrotters defeated the then-invincible Minneapolis Lakers in 1948. Despite his athletic dominance in the 1930s and 40s, Strong has largely been forgotten in American sports history.
In Ted Strong Jr.: The Untold Story of an Original Harlem Globetrotter and Negro League All-Star, Sherman L. Jenkins finally shares the fascinating story of this star athlete. Born Theodore Relighn Strong Jr. in South Bend, Indiana, Strong, the eldest of fourteen children, was fortunate to have a positive influence in his father—a baseball player himself. Strong went on to play in seven Negro League Baseball East-West All-Star games, receiving the most votes in...