Black Enterprise President and CEO Earl “Butch” Graves Jr. was inducted into the Legends of Ivy League Basketball for his outstanding contributions to Yale University’s basketball team.
For the second year in a row, The Ivy League honored two former student-athletes from each of the nation’s most prestigious colleges for their impact on their school’s basketball program and their professional accomplishments post-graduation. Each school’s athletic department selects a male and female honoree.
“This Legends of Ivy League Basketball class exemplifies the impact of the Ivy League model and the path to lifelong success the experience enables,” said Ivy League Executive Director Robin Harris in a statement. “We look forward to recognizing and celebrating this group’s extraordinary achievements, both on and off the court, at the Ivy League Men’s and Women’s Basketball Tournaments in March.”
With 2,090 career points, Graves holds the record as Yale’s all-time leading scorer and the third all-time scorer in the Ivy League. He led the Ivy League in scoring in 1981-82, 1982-83, and 1983-84. The Brooklyn native was also captain of the Yale Bulldogs basketball team and recognized as a three-time Associated Press All-America Honorable Mention and a two-time First Team All-Ivy honoree.
After earning a bachelor’s degree in economics from Yale in 1984, Graves was drafted into the NBA by the Philadelphia 76ers. He also enjoyed a brief stint with the Milwaukee Bucks and Cleveland Cavaliers before pursuing an M.B.A. at Harvard Business School from which he graduated in 1988.
Read more about his story at the Black Enterprise website, here.