The 75 greatest players in NBA history, ranked by Player Efficiency Rating (PER)
By Cal Durrett
75. Rick Barry-20.16
NBA legend Rick Barry had an interesting career, to say the least. He shot out of the gate, averaging 25.7 points and 10.6 rebounds as a rookie, and led the league in scoring at just 22, posting 35.6 points per game.
However, he quit the NBA over a financial disagreement with the San Francisco Warriors' owner and signed with a rival ABA team that was also in the Bay Area. Barry would spend four seasons in the ABA, averaging more than 30 points per game, before being forced to return to the NBA to finish out his rookie contract.
During his eight seasons in the NBA, Barry balled out, averaging 25.6 points, 7.5 rebounds, and 4.1 assists for the San Francisco/Golden State Warriors and Houston Rockets, respectively. Although he left the NBA for five years to play in the ABA, Barry's numbers are still top-notch and put him in the top-75. Had he not jumped ship, he could have become the second player in league history to score more than 30,000 points but, as it is, he is still remembered as an incendiary scorer and a rebel.