
The Cleveland Pipers was an American industrial basketball team based in Cleveland, Ohio in the 1950s and early 1960s. The Pipers are most known for having played in the short-lived American Basketball League from 1961–62, arguably as that brief pro league's pivotal franchise. General Manager, Mike Cleary hired John McLendon, the first African American head coach in professional basketball, to lead the squad. Playing under coach John McLendon, and later coach Bill Sharman, the team won the league's 1961-62 championship, the only title in the league's short history.