Rick Barry
Richard Barry was born on the 28th of March 1944 in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He grew up nearby in Roselle Park, an urban middle-class community where his father Aldo coached a varsity basketball team. As a fifth-grader, young Richard played with that older squad while baseball remained his favorite sport. He admired Willie Mays, the New York Giants superstar who wore jersey number 24. Barry once skipped school to shake hands with Mays at the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan. That stadium sat not far from his home. He adopted the same number throughout his entire basketball career as a tribute to the outfielder.
Barry fielded over thirty scholarship offers before choosing the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida. The Hurricanes ran an up-tempo pro-style system under head coach Bruce Hale. This approach suited Barry's skill set and athleticism perfectly. During his first season of eligibility he averaged nineteen points and fourteen rebounds per game. Those numbers jumped significantly to thirty-two points and sixteen rebounds as a junior. In December 1965 he scored fourteen of his team's final seventeen points during an eighty-three victory over Maryland. He earned Most Valuable Player honors for that tournament. His senior year average reached thirty-seven point four points per game. This marked the third-highest mark in NCAA history at the time. He recorded games of fifty-nine, fifty-five, fifty-four, fifty-one and fifty points alongside five others exceeding forty points.
San Francisco Warriors selected Barry with the second pick of the 1965 NBA draft. The team more than doubled its wins total from seventeen to thirty-five that season. They remained in playoff contention until the final regular season game. Longtime Bay Area broadcaster Bill King nicknamed him the Miami Greyhound due to his long slender build. That whippet-like quickness combined with remarkable instincts helped him win the NBA Rookie of the Year Award. He averaged twenty-five point seven points and ten point six rebounds per game during the 1965-66 season. His immediate impact transformed the franchise from a struggling team into a legitimate contender.
Barry moved to the American Basketball Association's Oakland Oaks owned by singer Pat Boone. Bruce Hale coached the new team as Barry's father-in-law. He signed a deal worth seventy-five thousand dollars plus fifteen percent ownership of the Oaks. The courts ordered him to sit out the 1967-68 season for the Oaks while upholding the reserve clause validity. This legal battle preceded Curt Flood's challenge by two years. Barry became the first American professional athlete to bring court action against a major league. Although Flood's case is better known, Barry set the precedent for player rights. He argued loyalty should not prevent earning money like any other business owner.
Barry developed an unorthodox underhand free throw technique that defined his career. His career .880 free throw percentage ranks number one in ABA history. That .900 percentage was the best of any NBA player at retirement in 1980. In the 1970-71 season he led the league in scoring with twenty-nine point four points per game. He repeated as an ABA All Star during the 1971-72 season with thirty-one point five points per game. During that same year he also led the ABA in free throw percentage. He became the record holder for most consecutive free throws in one game with twenty-three attempts. His shooting accuracy remained dominant across both leagues throughout his playing days.
Golden State Warriors captured the Pacific Division crown prior to the 1974-75 season. Barry averaged thirty point six points per game while leading the league in free throw percentage and steals. The upstart team defeated Seattle SuperSonics and Chicago Bulls to win the Western Conference crown. They faced Washington Bullets in the 1975 NBA Finals. Future Hall of Famers Elvin Hayes and Wes Unseld led the opposing squad. Golden State won the series in four games. Barry earned NBA Finals Most Valuable Player honors after averaging twenty-nine point five points, five assists and three point five steals per game. His career average of thirty-six point three points remains the highest in NBA Finals history.
Barry began broadcasting during the 1967-68 season covering Oakland Oaks games due to contractual matters. He continued working as a CBS analyst until Game 5 of the 1981 NBA Finals. CBS displayed an old photo of colleague Bill Russell who is African-American. Barry joked that it looked like some fool over there with that big watermelon grin. He later apologized claiming he did not realize racial overtones existed. CBS did not renew his employment for the next season. Producers cited negative commentary tone as the reason he was not brought back. He hosted a pilot for Catch Phrase but Art James replaced him when the series debuted in fall 1985. In September 2001 he began hosting a sports talk show on KNBR in San Francisco until June 2003.
Continue Browsing
Common questions
When and where was Rick Barry born?
Richard Barry was born on the 28th of March 1944 in Elizabeth, New Jersey. He grew up nearby in Roselle Park, an urban middle-class community.
Why did Rick Barry wear jersey number 24 throughout his basketball career?
Barry adopted the same number as a tribute to Willie Mays, the New York Giants superstar who wore jersey number 24. He once skipped school to shake hands with Mays at the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan.
What legal precedent did Rick Barry set regarding player rights?
Rick Barry became the first American professional athlete to bring court action against a major league when courts ordered him to sit out the 1967-68 season for the Oaks. This legal battle preceded Curt Flood's challenge by two years and established that loyalty should not prevent earning money like any other business owner.
How many points per game did Rick Barry average during the 1975 NBA Finals?
Rick Barry averaged twenty-nine point five points per game while earning NBA Finals Most Valuable Player honors after Golden State won the series in four games. His career average of thirty-six point three points remains the highest in NBA Finals history.
When was Rick Barry fired from CBS following the 1981 NBA Finals controversy?
CBS did not renew his employment for the next season after he made a joke about an old photo of colleague Bill Russell during Game 5 of the 1981 NBA Finals. Producers cited negative commentary tone as the reason he was not brought back.