Lester Harrison
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Lester "Les" Harrison (born August 10 1904 in Rochester, New York – died December 23 1997) was a basketball player, coach, promotor, and team owner, who was instrumental in the creation of the modern National Basketball Association. While he never played college basketball, Harrison was a player, coach, and promoter of professional basketball in New York from the 1920s through the 1940s. In 1944, he and his brother formed the Rochester Pros (soon to become the Rochester Royals, and the team which is now the Sacramento Kings), and soon joined the fledgling National Basketball League. In 1946, he signed Dolly King, one of the first African-American players in organized professional basketball.
In 1951, he helped to arrange the merger of the NBL and the rival Basketball Association of America to form the modern National Basketball Association. He continued to own and coach the Royals until 1955, when he relinquished coaching duties to Bobby Wanzer; he sold the team in 1959. The Royals won one NBA championship and five divisional titles under Harrison's leadership.
In 1980, he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame as a contributor.