Meadowlark Lemon, who was known as the face of the Harlem Globetrotters for over 20 years, has died. He was 83 years old.
Lemon died Sunday in Scottsdale, Arizona. His wife, Cynthia Lemon, confirmed the news to the New York Times.
After leaving the Army, Lemon joined the Globetrotters in 1954 and took over the main role of clown prince. He was famous for his on-the court tricks and became the team’s best-known star as they became a traveling basketball circus. But the team played a major role in bringing basketball to the masses and the world, even playing in Moscow during the Cold War. His career stretched from the birth of the NBA to the dawn of another era dominated by Magic Johnson and Larry Bird. He left the Trotters in 1978.
The Clown Prince of Basketball claimed on his website that he played in 16,000 basketball games during his career.
Lemon was such an instrumental part of basketball’s growth as a popular sport that he was inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 2003. The Globetrotters were inducted into the Hall the year before.
After retiring, Lemon hit the motivational speaker tour. He had 10 children and is survived by his wife Dr. Cynthia Lemon.