Confidence votes 98.1K. The 1950-51 season is when African Americans first played in the NBA. The first African American to be drafted by an NBA team was Chuck Cooper by the Boston Celtics. The first African American to play in an NBA game was Earl Lloyd of the Washington Capitols. Earl Lloyd was first black NBA player, Chuck Cooper was the first black player to be drafted, and Nat Clifton was the first black player to sign a contract with an NBA t â¦ eam.