Rick Barry had a complicated relationship with the San Francisco and Golden State Warriors, leaving the team to jump to the ABA after two seasons and signing a future contract two years after leaving for the ABA.
An All-American at Miami, averaging more than 37 points and 18 rebounds a game as a senior, Barry was taken second overall by the Warriors in the 1965 NBA Draft and blossomed quickly.
He was the NBA Rookie of the Year in 1965-66 and was a two-time All-Star and two-time All-NBA selection, leading the NBA in scoring in 1966-67 while taking the Warriors to the NBA Finals. He finished fifth in the MVP voting that season.
Barry averaged 40.8 points, 8.8 rebounds and 3.3 assists in 43.3 minutes per game, shooting 40 percent from the floor and 79.2 percent at the line in a six-game loss to the Philadelphia 76ers in the 1967 NBA Finals.
But in July 1967, Barry signed with the ABA’s Oakland Oaks. The Warriors filed suit in a California court and got an injunction that prevented Barry from playing for Oakland until 1968.
He signed a future contract with the Warriors in August 1969 that would take effect at the end of his ABA deal in 1972.
While in the ABA, he was a four-time All-Star and four-time All-ABA performer. He wandered with the Oaks franchise to Washington in 1969 and Virginia in 1970 before he was traded to the New York Nets.
Back with the Warriors, now known as Golden State, in 1972, Barry picked up where he left off, earning six more All-Star nods and four All-NBA berths, finishing fourth in the MVP voting in 1974-75 and 1975-76.
Barry led the NBA in free-throw shooting four times with Golden State, was second in the league in scoring in 1974-75 and fifth in 1975-76, also finished fifth in assists in 1975-76 and led the league in steals in 1974-75.
He averaged 29.5 points, five assists, four rebounds and 3.5 steals in 43 minutes per game, shooting 44.4 percent from the floor and 93.8 percent at the line while leading Golden State to a four-game sweep of the Washington Bullets in the 1975 NBA Finals, earning Finals MVP honors on the way.
He left a second time in June 1978 to sign as a veteran free agent with the Houston Rockets, with the Warriors receiving John Lucas and cash as compensation.
In eight seasons with San Francisco and Golden State, Barry averaged 25.6 points, 7.3 rebounds, 5.1 assists and 2.3 steals in 38.1 minutes per game, shooting 44.9 percent from the floor and 89.6 percent at the line.
He led the NBA in free-throw shooting twice more with the Rockets before retiring in September 1980.
Inducted into the Basketball Hall of Fame in 1987, Barry is fourth in NBA history with a free-throw percentage of .900, 39th with an average of 36.3 minutes per game and 21st with an average of 23.2 points per game.
He was the ABA’s all-time leader with an .880 free-throw percentage and an average of 30.5 points per game.
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