William Penn "Pop" Gates (August 30, 1917 – December 1, 1999) was an American professional basketball player.

[2] Gates started his professional basketball career with the New York Renaissance, beginning in 1938–39.

"Seven months before Jackie Robinson made his debut for the Brooklyn Dodgers, Leo Ferris helped usher in a new era of racial integration for professional basketball when he signed Pop Gates, who made his debut for the Tri-Cities Blackhawks in October 1946.

Gates, along with William "Dolly" King, were the first two African-American players in the National Basketball League (NBL) in 1946.

"When Leo Ferris came to me, it was like a godsend", Gates was quoted as saying in the book "Pioneers of the Hardwood: Indiana and the Birth of Professional Basketball."