Globetrotters’ legend Larry “Gator” Rivers has died from cancer in Savannah, Georgia, the Savannah Morning News reported. He was 73. The news was confirmed by Chatham County Commission Chairman Chester Ellis. He became a county commissioner in his native Savannah after retiring from the game.
Larry was one of the path-breaking players who integrated high school basketball in Georgia as a sophomore on the all-Black Beach High School that won the first Georgia High School Association basketball tournament in 1967 that included both black and white players. Larry graduated from Savannah High School in 1969.
He joined the Harlem Globetrotters, an association that lasted for 16 years as a player and a coach.
Rivers ran for county commission in Savannah in 2020 and was elected without opposition.
Savannah Mayor Van Johnson condoled the legend’s death on social media. “Legends never die, so you will always be around, my friend,” the mayor of Savannah added, “never forgot Savannah or Beach High School and dedicated endless hours of mentoring and teaching the rules of basketball and life to scores of young people. For this, he will always be remembered.”
