Rick Barry

Richard Francis Dennis Barry III (born March 28, 1944) is an American former professional basketball player who starred at the NCAA, American Basketball Association (ABA) and National Basketball Association (NBA) levels. Barry ranks among the most prolific scorers and all-around players in basketball history. He is the only player to lead the National Collegiate Athletic Association (NCAA), ABA, and NBA in points per game in a season. He ranks as the all-time ABA scoring leader in regular season (30.5 points per game) and postseason (33.5) play, while his 36.3 points per game are the most in NBA Finals history.

Barry is widely known for his unorthodox underhand free throw technique. His career .880 free throw percentage ranks No. 1 in ABA history, and his .900 percentage was the best of any NBA player at the time of his retirement in 1980. In 1987, he was inducted into the Naismith Memorial Basketball Hall of Fame. In 1996, he was named one of the 50 Greatest Players in NBA History. In October 2021, Barry was honored as one of the league's greatest players of all time by being named to the NBA 75th Anniversary Team.

Barry is the father of former professional basketball players Brent Barry, Jon Barry, Drew Barry, Scooter Barry, and Canyon Barry. His wife, Lynn Norenberg Barry, was a star basketball player at the College of William & Mary, where she became the first female athlete to have her jersey number (22) retired.

Barry was born in Elizabeth, New Jersey and grew up in nearby Roselle Park, an urban middle-class community. As a fifth-grader, he played with the varsity basketball team, for which his father Aldo served as coach, however, baseball was his best sport and he was a fan of local New York Giants superstar Willie Mays, who wore jersey number 24. Barry once skipped school to shake Mays's hand at the Polo Grounds in Upper Manhattan, where the Giants played not far from his home. He wore the same number in tribute to the outfielder throughout his basketball career. In 1962, he graduated from Roselle Park High School in Roselle Park.

Barry fielded over 30 scholarship offers before choosing the University of Miami in Coral Gables, Florida largely because the Hurricanes adhered to an up-tempo, pro-style system under head coach Bruce Hale, which was conducive to Barry's skill set and athleticism. It was there that the three-time All-American met his future wife Pamela, who was the daughter of the head coach.

Barry averaged 19.0 points and 14.6 rebounds per game in his first season of eligibility. After those numbers made sizable jumps to 32.2 and 16.6 as a junior, he entered his final season as a consensus preseason All-America selection. Some believed that only his hair-trigger temper could prevent it. While widely lauded for his unselfishness and leadership, he had developed a reputation as something of a hothead, especially as it concerned the referees.

A more mature and dominant Barry emerged in his final season. In December, the senior made headlines in the 1965 Hurricane Classic, in which he scored 14 of his team's final 17 points in an 80–73 defeat of Maryland in the championship game and was named Most Valuable Valuable of the tournament. Barry went on to lead the country with an average of 37.4 points per game, the third-highest mark in NCAA history at the time. Included were games of 59, 55, 54, 51 and 50 points as well as five others of 40 or more. His 475 rebounds (18.3 per game) also ranked No. 4 in the nation.

While the Hurricanes rolled to a 22–4 record, the second best win percentage in school history, Barry and his teammates were ineligible for the NCAA tournament. The basketball program was on probation for one season, which limited his national recognition and opportunity to be the first overall pick in the 1965 NBA draft.