Savoy Big Five
The
Savoy Big Five was the early version of the
Harlem Globetrotters. This
basketball team was created by
Abe Saperstein in
Chicago,
1926. It was named after
Chicago's
Savoy Theatre. The Savoy sponsored
Abe Saperstein in return for naming the team the "Savoy Big Five". The teams players were William Grant, Lester Johnson, Tommy Brookings, Inman Jackson, Joe Lillard, Walter Wright, Randolph Ramsey, and William Watson.