--- title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Cooper was my road roommate, and also…" description: "\"Cooper was my road roommate, and also happened to be the first African American player drafted by a National Basketball Association team.\" — Bob Cousy" image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a11/bob-cousy-16775_african-american_cooper-was-my-road-roommate-and-also-hap_3140471.png" --- # Cooper was my road roommate, and also happened to be the… ![“Cooper was my road roommate, and also happened to be the first African American player drafted by a National Basketball Association team.” quote by Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a11/bob-cousy-16775_african-american_cooper-was-my-road-roommate-and-also-hap_3140471.png) [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a11/bob-cousy-16775_african-american_cooper-was-my-road-roommate-and-also-hap_3140471.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/a11/bob-cousy-16775_african-american_cooper-was-my-road-roommate-and-also-hap_3140471.png) > “Cooper was my road roommate, and also happened to be the first African American player drafted by a National Basketball Association team.” [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) ## About This Quote This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation. A pioneering athlete broke racial barriers, showing talent can transcend prejudice. **In simple terms:** A Black player entered the NBA, challenging segregation. Key Takeaway Celebrate trailblazers, support inclusion. Themes sports history racial equality Mood inspirational reflective Type historical motivational When to use this quote - team dynamics - leadership - diversity training - sports recruitment Key Concepts civil rights breaking barriers Questions to Reflect On - How can organizations foster more inclusive scouting? - What obstacles remain for minorities in sports? A Different Perspective Success still depends on systemic support and opportunity. ★ ★ ★ ★ ★ No ratings yet [African american](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/african-american/) [Association](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/association/) [Basketball](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basketball/) [Basketball Association](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/basketball-association-3027747/) [Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/cooper/) [Drafted National](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/drafted-national-5593951/) [Firsts](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/firsts/) [Football](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/football/) [Happened](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/happened/) [Player](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/player/) [Player Drafted](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/player-drafted-5593950/) [Road Roommate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/road-roommate-5593949/) [Roommate](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/roommate/) [Team](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/team/) ## Related quotes > [So many guys come onto the scene who aren't supposed to be there. You pull for one, and then you see there's another and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kurt-warner/so-many-guys-come-onto-the-scene-who-aren-t-supposed-to-be-there-you/) [Kurt Warner](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kurt-warner/) > [I'm ecstatic that I had the opportunity to play in the American Basketball Association. It was an opportunity to be part of something new…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mel-daniels/i-m-ecstatic-that-i-had-the-opportunity-to-play-in-the-american/) [Mel Daniels](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mel-daniels/) > [The NBA (National Basketball Association) is never just a business. It's always business. It's always personal. All good businesses are personal. The best businesses…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mark-cuban/the-nba-national-basketball-association-is-never-just-a-business-it-s/) [Mark Cuban](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mark-cuban/) > [I was starting out in the business, there was only one path to playing professionally - graduate, or go four years. With the creation…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sonny-vaccaro/i-was-starting-out-in-the-business-there-was-only-one-path-to-playing/) [Sonny Vaccaro](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sonny-vaccaro/) > [You just gotta be who you are, and I think it's time to get rid of this whole National Basketball Association. Call it the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/rush-limbaugh/you-just-gotta-be-who-you-are-and-i-think-it-s-time-to-get-rid-of/) [Rush Limbaugh](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/rush-limbaugh/) > [We're on a hunt, Cooper. When you're on a hunt, you do whatever it takes.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/tamora-pierce/we-re-on-a-hunt-cooper-when-you-re-on-a-hunt-you-do-whatever-it-takes/) [Tamora Pierce](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/tamora-pierce/) > [The energy coming off of Bradley Cooper playing Jon Peters was insane.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alana-haim/the-energy-coming-off-of-bradley-cooper-playing-jon-peters-was-insane/) [Alana Haim](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alana-haim/) > [“Cooper had been at a scene once where a car had collided with an agent and pinned him against a metal barrier, shattering everything…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/marcus-sakey/cooper-had-been-at-a-scene-once-where-a-car-had-collided-with-an/) [Marcus Sakey](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/marcus-sakey/) > [One of the only TV shows that I really love is 'Twin Peaks.' Kyle McLachlan plays Agent Dale Cooper, and I love Dale Cooper,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jane-levy/one-of-the-only-tv-shows-that-i-really-love-is-twin-peaks-kyle/) [Jane Levy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jane-levy/) > [When the audience first sees Cooper talking into his tape recorder at the beginning of 'Twin Peaks,' I think that's the greatest introduction to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kyle-maclachlan/when-the-audience-first-sees-cooper-talking-into-his-tape-recorder-at/) [Kyle MacLachlan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kyle-maclachlan/) > [“Cooper’s been married in his head for a while now.” “That’s… kinda sweet.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/robyn-carr/cooper-s-been-married-in-his-head-for-a-while-now-that-s-kinda-sweet/) [Robyn Carr](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/robyn-carr/) > [Dennis Cooper, God help him, is a born writer.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-s-burroughs/dennis-cooper-god-help-him-is-a-born-writer/) [William S. Burroughs](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-s-burroughs/) > [There was a period of time when I thought I had to be Alice Cooper all the time.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alice-cooper/there-was-a-period-of-time-when-i-thought-i-had-to-be-alice-cooper/) [Alice Cooper](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alice-cooper/) > [When you're still, and some actors are really brilliant at that, you bring a kind of energy to you as opposed to sending the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/gabriel-byrne/when-you-re-still-and-some-actors-are-really-brilliant-at-that-you/) [Gabriel Byrne](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/gabriel-byrne/) > [“The only way anyone will ever get to you will be over my dead body.” Julia drew in a long breath. “In that case,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lisa-marie-rice/the-only-way-anyone-will-ever-get-to-you-will-be-over-my-dead-body/) [Lisa Marie Rice](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lisa-marie-rice/) ## More by Bob Cousy > [I had endured six years of frustration so I think winning it all meant more to me than most of the others on the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/i-had-endured-six-years-of-frustration-so-i-think-winning-it-all/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [My biggest win was getting the meal money bumped from $5 to $7.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/my-biggest-win-was-getting-the-meal-money-bumped-from-5-to-7/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [Back then every small town had a gym, and if itseated more than 2,000 then we'd be interested in playing in it.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/back-then-every-small-town-had-a-gym-and-if-itseated-more-than-2-000/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [People have been killing because of racial differences since the time of Adam and Eve, but in this country racism has been primarily aimed…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/people-have-been-killing-because-of-racial-differences-since-the-time/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [We hung out on the streets, played stickball, and did all of the things that other kids did.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/we-hung-out-on-the-streets-played-stickball-and-did-all-of-the-things/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [Kerner decided to trade my rights to the Chicago Stags, which sounded better to me than Tri-Cities, but the Stags folded up almost immediately.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/kerner-decided-to-trade-my-rights-to-the-chicago-stags-which-sounded/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [Do your best when no one is looking. If you do that, then you can be successful in anything that you put your mind…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/do-your-best-when-no-one-is-looking-if-you-do-that-then-you-can-be/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [We played every night. Sometimes we'd stay overnight after a game, but we'd usually drive on to our next destination.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/we-played-every-night-sometimes-we-d-stay-overnight-after-a-game-but/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [My family was poor, my father drove a cab for a living, but we felt normal because everybody else was in the same boat.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/my-family-was-poor-my-father-drove-a-cab-for-a-living-but-we-felt/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [The MVP award was very satisfying in terms of personal accomplishments, but the championship was the most important thing of all.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/the-mvp-award-was-very-satisfying-in-terms-of-personal/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [It also didn't take me long to decide that Tri-Cities wasn't for me, and that I wasn't going to go there to play basketball.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/it-also-didn-t-take-me-long-to-decide-that-tri-cities-wasn-t-for-me/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [Do your best when no one is looking. If you do that, then you can be successful at anything you put your mind to](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/do-your-best-when-no-one-is-looking-if-you-do-that-then-you-can-be-2/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [I once heard that Paul Seymour said as much as winning an NBA Championship, he'd like to see the Celtics lose a game after…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/i-once-heard-that-paul-seymour-said-as-much-as-winning-an-nba/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [French was my first language.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bob-cousy/french-was-my-first-language/) [Bob Cousy](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bob-cousy/) > [Every jock gets up and tells the world how lucky he is. 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